$2 trillion corona-virus stimulus bill

updated 3-30-2020

Direct payments to individuals

single Americans would receive $1,200, married couples would get $2,400 and parents would see $500 for each child under age 17.

individuals with adjusted gross incomes of more than $75,000, and those making more than $99,000 would not qualify at all. The thresholds are doubled for couples.

Student loan payments suspended

DOE would suspend payments on student loan borrowers without penalty through September 30

Department of Education will allow student loan borrowers to suspend payments without penalty for at least 60 days.

*More than 1 million student loan borrowers each year go into default. Outstanding education debt in the U.S. has tripled over the last decade and now exceeds $1.5 trillion, posing a greater burden to Americans than auto or credit card debt. By 2023, nearly 40 percent of borrowers are expected to default on their student loans.

REAL ID deadline delayed

The deadline to obtain a REAL ID, federally mandated identification that will be needed for passengers to board aircraft, will be extended until at least September 2021 — a year past the current deadline..

boost for unemployment benefits

(keep in mind as of 3-26-2020 3.8 million more people have now applied for unemployment) So at the low end of the scale shown below $800 a week (600 plus 200) times that by 3.8 million,which WAS NOT factored into this bill.

An extra $600 a week for four months on top of their state benefits, which range from $200 to $550 a week, on average, depending on the state.

13 weeks of extended benefits, which would be fully covered by the federal government. Currently, state unemployment checks last up to between 12 weeks and 28 weeks, depending on the state.

Stimulus bill offers $600 a week to the unemployed for 4 months, drawing Republican objections

Plus, the deal calls for a new pandemic unemployment assistance program, which would provide jobless benefits to those who are unemployed, partially unemployed or unable to work because of the virus and don’t qualify for traditional benefits. This includes independent contractors and the self-employed, who typically don’t qualify for such assistance, and to gig economy workers, who aren’t eligible in many states. These benefits would mirror what’s available in an individual’s state.

$500 billion lending program

The Treasury Department can provide $500 billion in loans, loan guarantees and investments.

That specifically includes $25 billion for passenger air carriers, $4 billion for cargo air carriers and $17 billion for businesses that work in national security. The rest of the funds, $454 billion, are given wide latitude to provide loans to businesses, states and municipalities.

The measure includes restrictions on businesses who receive the loans. Those businesses may not issue dividends for up to a year after the loan is no longer outstanding, and must retain 90% of employment levels as of March 24, “to the extent practicable,” through September 30. The loans also cannot last longer than five years.

There’s a specific provision in the program for direct loans to mid-sized businesses, defined as between 500 and 10,000 employees, as well as non-profit organizations, where no payments will be due for the first six months after the loan is issued.

A congressional oversight commission will monitor how the money is spent. Current members

Politician’s businesses can’t get money

The legislation prohibits federally elected officials and their immediate relatives from obtaining funds from the $500 billion program.

Businesses that are owned or partly owned by “the President, the Vice President, the head of an Executive department, or a Member of Congress; and the spouse, child, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law” will be barred. The provision applies to anyone with 20% or greater stake in a business.

Senate stimulus deal includes individual checks — but don’t expect the money until at least May

No money for border wall

The Defense Department will get $1.2 billion for the National Guard’s corona-virus response. Over 10,000 National Guard members to date have been activated.

An additional $1 billion is available for Defense Purchases Act purchases.

Notably, while the Pentagon will be allowed to transfer the money to other “applicable” accounts, it prohibits transferring the money to the counter-drug account, an account which has been used to fund Trump’s border wall.

Airlines and airports

The package includes $32 billion in grants for wages and benefits to the decimated airline industry.

That includes $25 billion for passenger airlines, $4 billion for cargo airlines, and $3 billion for industry contractors, such as those who handle catering, baggage, ticketing, and aircraft cleaning.

another $25 billion for passenger airlines and $4 billion for cargo airlines will be available in the form of loans or loan guarantees.

Companies that receive the assistance are barred from making furloughs, pay cuts, or stock buybacks, and from issuing dividends to investors, through September. It also institutes limits on executive compensation.

Airlines may also be required to operate routes they would otherwise like to cancel because of low ridership or profitability. Under the bill, the Transportation Department can require air carriers continue service on routes, particularly for the “needs of small and remote communities and the need to maintain well-functioning health care and pharmaceutical supply chains, including for medical devices and supplies.”

Hospitals

$117 billion for hospitals, according to an estimate from the American Hospital Association, which called it an important first step.

$100 billion public health and social emergency fund to reimburse providers for expenses and lost revenues related to the coronavirus pandemic.

$65 billion will go to hospitals, with the rest funneled to doctors, nurses, suppliers and others, the association said.

The legislation also boosts reimbursements by 20% for treating Medicare patients with corona-virus. And it eliminates $8 billion in scheduled payment reductions to hospitals caring for large numbers of uninsured and Medicaid patients, as well as temporarily removing a 2% cut for treating Medicare patients

Contractors and ‘gig’ workers

Independent contractors and so-called gig workers will be eligible to receive federal aid.

Protections against foreclosures and evictions

The bill includes housing protections against foreclosures on mortgages and evictions for renters.

The bill states that anyone facing a financial hardship from corona-virus shall be given a forbearance on a federally backed mortgage loan of up to 60 days, which can be extended for four periods of 30 days each. The legislation says that servicers of federally backed mortgage loans may not begin the foreclosure process for 60 days from March 18.

The bill also does not allow fees, penalties or additional interest to be charged as a result of delayed payments. It includes similar protections for those with multifamily federal mortgage loans, allowing them to receive a 30-day forbearance and up to two 30-day extensions.

Those with federally backed mortgage loans who have tenants would also not be allowed to evict tenants solely for failure to pay rent for a 120-day period, and they may not charge fees or penalties to tenants for failing to pay rent.

$25 million for the Kennedy Center

The bill contains $25 million to support the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC.

They’ve had to cancel all their performances and have already laid off nearly 800 people. If they don’t get a specific cash infusion, they will become insolvent and could be unable to reopen,” the aide said.

Stimulus bill includes $100M arts funding

$75 million for the National Endowment for the Arts, which is a federal program

signed Dec 20 2019 $25,690,000 (title VI section 602) was appropriated to the Kennedy Center for 2020 fiscal year. The Kennedy Center closed march 12th the Kennedy Center says its campus and its facilities, including the restaurant, café, and other food services, will be closed to visitors. Until further notice.

March 29th 2020
“Without concerts and the corresponding ticket revenue, it is an unsustainable strategy to pay musicians to stay at home during this forced and still undefined quarantine period,” she said. “These cuts combined with anticipated administrative staff furloughs and potential layoffs may seem drastic, however, we know the only way through this is for all union and non-union employees to participate in the solution. The other unions within the Center have also experienced this furlough and are not or will not be receiving compensation.”

The payroll for the National Symphony each week is $400,000. Rutter said the $25 million would go toward “essential personnel to ensure we can reopen the Center.” – Deborah Rutter Kennedy Center President (she suspended her own $1.2 million salary during the coronavirus outbreak.)

More funding for food assistance

$450 million for The Emergency Food Assistance Program, which supplies food banks, which are expected to see more clients as job losses mount.

$350 million would buy additional food, and

$100 million would be used for distribution.

$200 million for food assistance for Puerto Rico and other US territories

$100 million for food distribution on American Indian reservations.

additional funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps) and Child Nutrition Program, it would not expand eligibility or benefits.

*There are more than two hundred Food banks in the United States, usually working as large distribution depots that supply regional charities through a hub-and-spoke system. With the help of more than 61,000 food pantries and soup kitchens, food banks provide some 46 million people with free food each year.

Evacuations of Americans

$324 million for the State Department, as well as money specifically for “evacuation expenses,” The proposed legislation doesn’t specify who would be evacuated, whether it’s US diplomats or American citizens living overseas, or potentially both.

A senior State Department official said that 9,300 Americans had already been repatriated. A different senior State Department official said the government was tracking 13,500 Americans seeking assistance abroad.

(at 13,500 that’s a bit more than 24.1 million dollars per person here)

Peace Corps, diplomatic programs and refugees

The bill includes $88 million for the Peace Corps, an independent US government agency that sends American volunteers abroad.

$324 million for diplomatic programs,

$258 million for international disaster assistance,

$350 million for migration and refugee assistance and

$95 million for USAID operating expenses.

This not my opinion my Sources are CNN, MSNBC, Forbes, Fox Business, and compared there reporting against the the bill itself. I’m not saying I agree or disagree here is the bill. rechecking to see if changes were made at the last minute. but I personally do not see stimulus here!