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Author: Sarah Castro

Reviewed 9/22

CR until February 18

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The House and Senate have agreed to pass a continuing resolution (CR), which would keep the federal government open and funded, until February 18, 2022. Congress has previously passed a CR that expires at midnight on Friday, December 3, 2021.

The extension gives the House and Senate additional time to finish FY2022 funding and try to pass other legislative priorities, like Build Back Better and raise the debt ceiling, before the end of the calendar year.

While the extension is not happy news, there had been political rumblings of allowing the federal government to shut down for a short time in December for political gains. The CR until February 18, 2022 avoids that situation.

The legislation would be a straight extension of existing funding with the only increase in appropriations for Afghan refugees.

House Passes 2nd COVID-19 Appropriations Package, Next Senate

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Despite earlier push back, the House passed fixes to its financial relief package Monday night by Unanimous Consent. Conservative Senate Republicans also voiced concerns, specifically about the small business leave provisions. Those requirements for paid leave were apparently tweaked by tightening eligibility in some areas. It restricts paid family leave to $200 per day or $10,000 total. It also provides more generous tax credits to employers for providing paid leave than the initial bill.

The package, which still has no official cost estimate, would extend unemployment insurance, increase federal Medicaid spending, offer nearly $1 billion in additional food aid, provide free coverage for coronavirus testing, and more.

The measure now moves to the Senate  which is expected to take up the measure (HR 6201) today to cushion the economic blow of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

3rd COVID-19 Package Being Discussed

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The government’s economic stimulus is set to quickly balloon into trillion-dollar territory in the coming days, the largest rescue in modern American history, as major industries flood the Administration and Capitol Hill for aid while huge swaths of the economy stall from the coronavirus crisis.

The size and scope of the package are morphing rapidly as the economic and market damage mounts. Senate Republicans and the White House are exploring how to fast-track existing legislation with the upcoming stimulus packages.

The Administration is expected to ask for a third package of $850 billion, which would consist of direct spending and tax breaks.

Stay tuned.

Texas Congressman Holds Up COVID-19 Funding Bill

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Rep. Louie Gohmert, (R–TX), is holding up the House-passed coronavirus relief bill, HR 6201– the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, and preventing it from being delivered to the Senate for a vote.

The House was expected to make technical corrections today to the bipartisan measure,  which passed by the House early Saturday. However, Rep. Gohmert is insisting on having the changes read out loud, keeping the measure from being passed by Unanimous Consent. If one Member of Congress stands in opposition, the House cannot use the Unanimous Consent process to send the bill to the Senate and the House would have to have a vote by the full house — and many Members went home to their districts from Washington this weekend.

 

On Saturday, the House early this morning passed H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, by a vote of 363-40.  An overview of the measure is here.

Highlights of the bill include:

  • Clarifies that the funds provided under section 105 of Division G can be used for COVID-19 diagnostic tests and related administration or service costs (as defined under section 101). Claims reimbursed under this section would be limited to those for uninsured individuals not eligible for other COVID-19 testing and services assistance included in the bill.
  • Clarifies that Medicaid payment for the new eligibility category for the uninsured under section 104 of Division G is limited to COVID-19 testing and testing-related services. Makes a technical amendment to clarify that the increase to the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) specified in section 104 of Division G is applicable notwithstanding the first sentence of the subsection.
  • Clarifies that SSA should use dedicated phone lines for emergency paid leave applications, separate from those used for the regular Social Security program.
  • Clarifies that that the emergency waiver of federal rules applies to four specific kinds of rules: work search, waiting periods, “good cause” to leave employment, and employer experience rating.
  • Removes findings from the Health Care Worker Protection Act of 2020.
  • Clarifies definition of a “qualifying need related to a public health emergency.”