US President Joe Biden signed the huge USD 1.9 trillion American Rescue Package on Thursday, which is expected to give the country's economy a big boost.
US President Joe Biden signed the huge USD 1.9 trillion American Rescue Package on Thursday, which is expected to give the country's economy a big boost. In his brief remarks, Biden characterized the bill as "historic legislation" that "is about restoring the foundation of the country and giving a fighting chance to the citizens of this country, working people, middle-class people, and those who founded the country. The colossal bill, known as the American Rescue Plan, allocates money for vaccines, schools, small businesses, and anti-poverty programs such as an expanded child tax credit that will mean new monthly payments to many parents.
After the Senate made amendments to the original bill — some to comply with Senate budget rules, and others to win the support of moderate Democrats — the House gave its final approval on Wednesday.
THE BILL WOULD INCLUDE $1400 IN STIMULUS FUNDS
Individuals earning less than $75,000 and married couples earning less than $150,000 will receive $1,400 per person in direct payments. In addition, the bill will include $1,400 per dependent.
Above those income thresholds, the benefits will steadily decrease before disappearing completely above an income limit of $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for married couples. The limits in the House's version of the stimulus package, which set the cutoffs at $100,000 for individuals and $200,000 for married couples, were reduced.
THE EXISTING RAISE IN UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE OF $300 A WEEK WILL BE RETAINED
The Senate bill extends unemployment insurance through early September, with a $300-per-week federal supplement that was included in the previous stimulus package passed in December.
Mr. Biden suggested increasing the supplementary benefit to $400 a week, which the House approved, but the Senate decided to keep it at $300 per week.
The Senate bill also contains a clause that would exempt people who have lost jobs from paying federal income taxes on the first $10,200 of unemployment insurance they collect in 2020 if they earn less than $150,000.
THE CHILD CREDIT WOULD BECOME MORE GENEROUS, AMONG OTHER BENEFITS
The bill will extend the child tax credit, which is currently worth up to $2,000 per child under the age of 17, until 2021. The tax credit under the law could be as much as $3,600 for children under the age of five and $3,000 for children aged 6 to17.
The bill would make the full value of the credit available to low-income people who are currently ineligible or receive only a portion. And for the second half of this year, it would have the federal government send advance payments of the credit to Americans in periodic installments, akin to a guaranteed income for families with children.
The legislation would also expand the child and dependent care tax credit for 2021, and it would expand the earned-income tax credit for workers without children for this year as well. Through 2025, it would exempt student loan forgiveness from income taxes.
THE FUNDS WILL BE USED TO COMBAT THE PANDEMIC AS WELL AS TO ASSIST STATES, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS , AMD SCHOOLS
The bill will finance vaccine delivery, coronavirus monitoring, touch tracing, and genomic sequencing, among other things. It will also provide funding to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
It includes around $130 billion for schools and $350 billion for states, local governments, territories, and tribal governments. It also provides money for colleges and universities, public transportation, housing assistance, child care, and food assistance.
In addition, the bill provides funding to assist companies, such as restaurants and live entertainment centres, as well as a bailout for financially distressed multiemployer pension plans.
THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT (ACA) WILL BE BOLSTERED
The bill would expand subsidies for individuals who buy health insurance through the Affordable Care Act's marketplaces for a limited time. Which provides billions of dollars for public health services and health care for veterans.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., held out hope for GOP support in a statement following the Senate’s passage of the plan.
Biden is expected to step on with his economic recovery and infrastructure proposal after signing the stimulus bill into law. Nonetheless, Schumer did not rule out the possibility of another pandemic relief bill if economic conditions suggest a need. He told reporters, "If they need more assistance, we'll do another bill."
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Mike Goossen, CPA
Mike is a CPA and has over 30 years of experience in thought leadership and mentoring. His experience and constant efforts in solving prevalent issues of accounting industry is his biggest stand out point. He has been instrumental in mentoring scores of entrepreneurial accounting and finance professionals to get up on their feet and convert their practices into successful ones. He has authored a book called 'Principles of High Performance Leadership'
