But first, the bill has to go back to the other side of the Capitol, where the House – which has already approved its own version of the bill – is expected to vote on Tuesday to approve the changes made in the Senate. The vote is expected to be successful on a party line, as was the case in the Senate, with a narrow Democratic majority.
Only after the House is approved will the Senate version land on Biden’s desk.
Payments don’t come out all at once. Those whose bank information is filed with the IRS are likely to receive the money first, because it will be deposited directly into their accounts. Others may receive paper checks or prepaid debit cards in the mail.
This time, individuals earning less than $ 75,000 and couples earning less than $ 150,000 will receive a total payment of $ 1,400, plus an additional $ 1,400 per dependent. But the third round of checks would be eliminated more quickly than previous payments – completely cutting off individuals who earn more than $ 80,000 a year and couples who earn more than $ 160,000, regardless of how many children they have. Payments would reach about 90% of households, according to an estimate from Penn Wharton’s Budget Model.
Unemployment benefits
As for unemployment insurance, the Senate and House bills differ in terms of the provisions.
If the House approves the Senate’s amendments and the bill is signed by Biden in the next few days, the unemployed may see little or no break in pay. But it depends on their state.
The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program provides benefits for freelancers, concert workers, independent contractors and certain people affected by the pandemic, while the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program extends the duration of payments to those in the state’s traditional unemployment system.
Unlike the aid package approved by Congress in December, this legislation must be signed before the dismissed workers run out of benefits, and there are far fewer changes than in the previous bill, said Andrew Stettner, a senior member of The Century Foundation. Still, some states will wait until the U.S. Department of Labor releases all necessary guidelines to re-program their systems.
Most states are expected to begin submitting unemployment benefits in less than three weeks, he said.
Child tax credit
Other measures in the package, however, are new or involve major changes to existing programs – including temporary improvements in child tax credit and federal premium subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans, as well as for COBRA policies for dismissed workers who wish to maintain coverage of health insurance from your employer.
This would take more time for federal agencies to implement, so it could take several weeks, or even months, before Americans receive them.
House and Senate projects require an increase in credit to $ 3,600 for each child under the age of 6 and to $ 3,000 for each child between 6 and 17 years of age in 2021. Currently, it is a $ 2,000 credit for children between 6 and 16 years old.
The credit would also become fully refundable for the year and can be paid monthly, instead of as a lump sum at the time of tax.
Families could receive half of their total credit as a periodic payment starting in July and until the rest of the year, according to the legislation. They could then claim the remaining half on their 2021 tax returns.
Health insurance benefits
Americans who would qualify for the heavier federal award grants from the Affordable Care Act policy assistance package would have to wait until new regulations were programmed on Obamacare grants, which could take a few weeks.
Subscribers would not pay more than 8.5% of their income for coverage, compared to almost 10% now. In addition, those earning more than the current limit of 400% of the federal poverty level – about $ 51,000 for an individual and $ 104,800 for a family of four in 2021 – would become eligible for aid. The provision, retroactive to January, would have a duration of two years.
Low-income subscribers can have their premiums completely eliminated in the same period, and those receiving unemployment insurance can apply for premium-free coverage in 2021.
Adjustments to existing grant programs could be made fairly quickly, but the provision for the unemployed may take longer to implement, since it is new, said Larry Levitt, executive vice president of health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation.
In addition, Senate legislation provides full subsidy to the premium until the end of September for dismissed workers who wish to remain on the employer’s health plan through COBRA. The House bill would require them to pay 15% of the premium, which could still be expensive.
This provision may take longer to be implemented, as it is a totally new benefit.
Meanwhile, food stamp beneficiaries would continue to see a 15% increase in benefits, but the increase would last until September, rather than expire at the end of June, according to bills passed by the Senate and the House.