The second installment of the stimulus package may be about to get a good dose of stimulus. Congress approved and President Trump signed a bill providing up to $600 to eligible Americans, and the House is scheduled to vote today on a bill that would raise the amount of the payments to a maximum of $2,000 per person.
President Trump signed the Cobid relief bill (which also includes funding for vaccine distribution, small businesses, and government operations through the end of the fiscal year) after threatening to veto it. However, Trump signed the bill on Sunday, four days after receiving it from lawmakers and two days before a government shutdown would be required.
In negotiations between the House and Senate over the bailout bill, both parties wrangled over the size of the direct payment, with Democrats insisting on a larger figure of $2,000. Despite President Trump calling the bill a "disgrace" and demanding that the check be increased to $2,000, congressional Republicans resisted his pleas.
As it stands, the current stimulus bill provides a $600 stimulus package and partially reinstates some of the enhanced federal unemployment benefits.
As in the original stimulus bill, Americans who reported up to $75,000 in adjusted gross income on their 2019 tax returns would receive $600, and heads of households with annual incomes up to $112,500 or couples with annual incomes up to $150,000 would receive a check for $1,200. In addition, each dependent child will receive $600.
The House is expected to vote to increase the stimulus payment to $2,000 per person, but as of Monday morning it is unclear whether the Republican-led Senate will do the same. President Trump said in a statement that the Senate would begin the same process, but Majority Leader Mitch McConnell did not mention it in his own statement on Sunday.
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