Republicans, along with the White House, revealed the parameters of the fifth coronavirus spending package this morning. As of the time of this writing, it is to include another round of $1,200 direct payments to Americans and an extension of the federal eviction moratorium.
Also included is protection against “frivolous” lawsuits for schools, universities and corporations for individuals coming back to campuses and being at risk of contracting Covid19 while there.
Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the proposal is that it replaces the $600 unemployment boost with an unemployment benefit that covers only up to 70% of an employee’s wages. The goal is to prevent the scenario where employees are making more money from unemployment benefits than they did from their paychecks, thus dis-incentivizing returning to work.
The proposal would ensure “that people don’t get paid more to stay home than they do to work, and we can move very quickly with the Democrats on these issues,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said today.
“The fair thing is to replace wages, and it just wouldn’t be fair to use taxpayer dollars to pay more people to sit home than they would get working and get a job.”
Administration officials also added that they are open to doing a piecemeal approach to the stimulus package if a broad deal with Democrats is not forthcoming.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi reacted harshly.
Republicans are “in disarray,” she said, “and that delay is causing suffering for America’s families. So we have been ready for two months and 10 days. I’ve been here all weekend hoping they had something to give us.”
She was especially displeased with the replacement of the $600 unemployment benefit package, saying the $600 number should be kept for the sake of “simplicity.”
“The reason we had $600 was its simplicity,” she said. “And figuring out 70% of somebody’s wages. People don’t all make a salary…They make wages and they sometimes have it vary. So why don’t we just keep it simple?”