Pelosi’s Priorities In Next Stimulus Bill: Shoring Up Health System, Protecting Front Line Workers, Investing In Infrastructure
Congress just passed a record-breaking $2.2 trillion stimulus package, but House Democrats are already planning for phase 4: “Our first bills were about addressing the emergency. The third bill was about mitigation. The fourth bill would be about recovery. Emergency, mitigation, recovery,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Republicans are less sure that another massive relief package is needed and are adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Meanwhile, a top Pentagon watchdog is tapped to oversee the distribution of the trillions of dollars in stimulus.
The New York Times:
Pelosi Floats New Stimulus Plan: Rolling Back SALT Cap
As lawmakers prepare for another round of fiscal stimulus to address economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested the next package include a retroactive rollback of a tax change that hurt high earners in states like New York and California. A full rollback of the limit on the state and local tax deduction, or SALT, would provide a quick cash infusion in the form of increased tax rebates to an estimated 13 million American households — nearly all of which earn at least $100,000 a year. (Tankersley and Cochrane, 3/30)
Politico:
Pelosi Aims To Move Fast On Next Rescue Package
“Our first bills were about addressing the emergency. The third bill was about mitigation. The fourth bill would be about recovery. Emergency, mitigation, recovery,” Pelosi said on a conference call. “I think our country is united in not only wanting to address our immediate needs — emergency, mitigation, and the assault on our lives and livelihoods — but also, how we recover in a very positive way.” But Democrats’ approach could put them on a collision course with senior Republicans, who say they are very much in wait-and-see mode when it comes to another potential multi-trillion-dollar bill and are warning Pelosi not to try to jam the Senate with a progressive plan. (Ferris, Desiderio and Levine, 3/30)
Reuters:
U.S. Congress Eyes Next Steps In Coronavirus Response
Democrats who control the House of Representatives were discussing boosting payments to low- and middle-income workers, likely to be among the most vulnerable as companies lay off and furlough millions of workers, as well as eliminating out-of-pocket costs for coronavirus medical treatment. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she would work with Republicans to craft a bill that could also provide added protections for front-line workers and substantially more support for state and local governments to deal with one of the largest public health crises in U.S. history. (Morgan and Cornwell, 3/30)
The Hill:
Democrats Eye Major Infrastructure Component In Next Coronavirus Package
As an additional component, Democrats are also eyeing new funding for water, broadband, schools and other infrastructure systems that have proven insufficient, they said, in the face of the current coronavirus crisis. "There are infrastructure needs that our country has that directly relate to how we are proceeding with the coronavirus," Pelosi said on a conference call with reporters. "And we would like to see in what comes next something that has always been nonpartisan, bipartisan, and that is an infrastructure piece that takes us into the future."(Lillis, 3/30)
Politico:
Pentagon Watchdog Tapped To Lead Committee Overseeing $2 Trillion Coronavirus Package
The nation's top government watchdogs on Monday appointed Glenn Fine, the acting inspector general for the Pentagon, to lead the newly created committee that oversees implementation of the $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill signed by President Donald Trump last week. Fine will lead a panel of fellow inspectors general, dubbed the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, and command an $80 million budget meant to "promote transparency and support oversight" of the massive disaster response legislation. His appointment was made by a fellow committee of inspectors general, assigned by the new law to pick a chairman of the committee. (Cheney, 3/30)
The Wall Street Journal:
Government To Begin Sending Stimulus Payments In The Next Three Weeks
The government will begin sending out stimulus payments to households in the next three weeks, and will distribute them automatically, with no action required for most people, officials said Monday. But some seniors and others who typically don’t file returns will need to submit a simple tax return to receive the economic-impact payments, the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service said in an announcement. (McKinnon, 3/30)
The Associated Press:
Conditions For Companies That Get Virus Aid: Room For Abuse?
A $500 billion federal aid package for companies and governments hurt by the coronavirus includes rules aimed at ensuring that the taxpayer money is used in ways that would help sustain the economy. But questions are being raised about whether those guardrails will prevent the kinds of abuses that have marked some corporate bailouts of the past. In return for the emergency loans, which could be spun by the Federal Reserve into up to $4.5 trillion, companies will face temporary limits on what they can pay executives. (Gordon, 3/30)
The Associated Press:
Urgent Question From Small Businesses: When Will Aid Arrive?
When will the money arrive? That’s the urgent question for small business owners who have been devastated by the coronavirus outbreak. They’re awaiting help from the $2 trillion rescue package signed into law Friday. But with bills fast coming due, no end to business closings and an economy that’s all but shut down, owners are worried about survival. (Rosenberg, 3/30)
Kaiser Health News:
COVID-19 Bonanza: Stimulus Hands Health Industry Billions Not Directly Related To Pandemic
The coronavirus stimulus package Congress rushed out last week to help the nation’s hospitals and health care networks hands the industry billions of dollars in windfall subsidies and other spending that has little to do with defeating the COVID-19 pandemic. The $2 trillion legislation, which President Donald Trump signed Friday, includes more than $100 billion in emergency funds to compensate hospitals and other health care providers for lost revenue and other costs associated with COVID-19. (Schulte, 3/30)
Politico:
Congress Eyes Avoiding Washington For At Least A Month
After passing the largest economic relief bill in history, Congress is now considering staying away from Washington for a month or more as the coronavirus makes even the routine act of legislating a dangerous risk for new transmissions. Officially, Congress is scheduled to come back on April 20 as lawmakers try to avoid traveling and congregating amid the raging crisis and as they plot a potential fourth phase of economic relief. (Everett, Caygle and Bresnahan, 3/30)
And in other Capitol Hill news —
ProPublica:
Sen. Burr Faces DOJ Investigation For Selling A Fortune In Stocks Right Before The Market Crashed
Federal authorities are scrutinizing Sen. Richard Burr’s stock sell-off before the market crash triggered by the coronavirus outbreak, CNN reported on Sunday. The news comes less than two weeks after ProPublica and the Center for Responsive Politics reported that Burr, a Republican from North Carolina, unloaded between $628,000 and $1.72 million of his holdings on Feb. 13 in 33 separate transactions, a significant portion of his total portfolio. The sales came soon after he offered public assurances that the government was ready to battle the coronavirus. (Faturechi, 3/30)
