[ad_1]
Many Democrats and Republicans are in favor of additional stimulus spending, but there was little hope for a deal until the end of the year until late last week, when Democratic leaders announced their support to a bipartite proposal. Negotiators still have a long way to go and time is running out for many Americans in need.
Lawmakers have already allowed some key relief programs to expire over the summer, including a $ 600 increase in unemployment benefits and a small business loan program. It has been months since most Americans received their $ 1,200 stimulus checks.
Additional aid is about to run out at the end of December. Millions of people could be completely evicted from unemployment benefits and tenants could lose eviction protections if Congress does not act. And those with student debt will have to start repaying their loans again after January 31.
“Soon we’re going to be in a situation where a lot of families are really going to fight very seriously in a much deeper and more widespread way than we’ve seen so far,” said John Friedman, professor of economics at Brown University. and Co-Director of Opportunity Insights at Harvard University following the takeover.
3 statistics that show Americans desperately need more federal help
1. The United States created half as many jobs last month than expected
The US economy created 245,000 jobs in November, a dramatic slowdown from the 610,000 jobs created in October.
There are still 9.8 million fewer jobs than before the start of the pandemic. This is more jobs than what was lost in 2008, after the financial crisis.
2. Unemployment remains stubbornly high for low-wage workers
The recovery so far has been patchy. The employment rate of low-wage workers (those earning less than $ 27,000 per year) has fallen 20% from its pre-pandemic level. Meanwhile, the employment rate of workers earning more than $ 60,000 a year has returned to its January level, according to Opportunity Insights.
Those who lost their jobs received enhanced unemployment benefits through the previous congressional assistance program. Still, around 12 million people stand to lose their unemployment assistance at the end of the month when some programs expire.
3. Small businesses close at a higher rate
The number of small businesses opened in the United States is down 29% from January and after rebounding in the spring, the number is trending down again. There are fewer active now than at any time since May, according to Opportunity Insights. The second drop is likely due to two reasons: More lockdowns in cities and states as coronavirus cases rise and federal aid runs out.
The federal government sent more than $ 500 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses – but the loans were only supposed to cover about eight weeks of spending. For most loan recipients, this money ran out over the summer and there was nothing to replace it.
What the Congress is talking about
If lawmakers are able to push anything through before the end of the year, it won’t be as large as the $ 3 trillion bill Democrats proposed in May and could be even smaller than the Republican $ 1 trillion proposal unveiled in July.
Even though progressives like Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders are demanding that a second round of stimulus checks be included in this next bill, money for the payments was not part of the bipartisan proposal considered last week.
But the money to extend unemployment benefits is on the table, as well as to allow small business owners to apply for a second Paycheck Protection Program loan. Lawmakers are also talking about extending the moratorium on evictions that will expire at the end of the month. More money for vaccine development and distribution, as well as screening and testing for Covid-19 is also a priority.
CNN’s Anneken Tappe and Lauren Fox contributed reporting.
[ad_2]
Source link
