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Category: 116th Congress

Text and Section-by-Section Summaries of “Phase 3” Now Available

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The text of the Senate Republican stimulus bill, “Phase 3,” has been released and is available here.

In addition, several chairmen of the committees that would have jurisdiction over different parts of the bill have released summaries of the parts of the bill that they would oversee.  The section-by-section summaries of parts of the bill that are most relevant to UW and other universities are provided below:

As noted previously, this is the initial proposal from the Senate Republican and it will need to be modified along the way as they begin to negotiate with Congressional Democrats, who will also have their own priorities.

 

 

Senate Republicans Release “Phase 3” Stimulus Bill

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Earlier this evening, Senate Republicans unveiled their initial version of the “Phase 3” stimulus bill in an attempt to prevent further damage to the economy.  The center piece of the package is direct payments of up to $1,200 for individuals and $2,400 for married couples, with the payments being cut off at individuals making $99,000 per year.

The proposal includes additional assistance to other sectors of the economy, such as $50 billion for the air line industry and $8 billion for the air cargo industry.

While the measure was introduced by the Senate Republican leadership, there is still disagreement within the Senate ranks.  In addition, neither the House or Senate Democrats were involved in the drafting of the proposal, meaning changes are likely along the way.

Read more about the situation here and here.

House Clears Bill to Protect GI Bill Benefits, Sends It to White House

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By Unanimous Consent, the House cleared early this morning S. 3503, a bill aimed at ensuring that the disbursement of GI Bill benefits is not disrupted as a result of the coronavirus and COVID-19.  The Senate approved the measure quickly earlier this week.

The bill now heads to the White House for the President’s signature.

A large coalition of groups and individual institutions asked for the bill’s quick adoption.

Senate Passes, Trump Signs Coronavirus Bill; Next Relief Package Being Readied

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The Senate passed earlier this afternoon by a vote of 90 to 8 and the President just signed H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.  This is the second bill signed into law in response to the outbreak.

The Administration and Congress have now shifted their collective focus to the next relief package, which could total approximately $1 trillion and could include, among other provisions, direct payments to households as well as assistance to various sectors of the economy.  Read more about the discussions in the Washington Post and Politico.

 

Senate Passes Second Supplemental

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The US Senate has passed the second supplemental appropriations bill approved by the House late last week. The legislation is now awaiting the President’s signature to become law. President Trump has expressed support for the bill.

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act was the result of negotiations between Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. The bill provides sick leave, unemployment assistance, over $1 billion in food aid, and free COVID-19 testing.