As Republicans and Democrats forged ahead toward a deal on a massive economic stimulus proposal to combat the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, details of the developing proposal have started to emerge.
Senate Democrats struck down the bill in a procedural vote on Monday amid a gulf over what both parties wanted to include in it. But they made progress by Tuesday morning, as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the sides were at "the 2-yard line." Even so, senators did not reach an agreement by 5:30 p.m. ET.
Here are some of the expected components of the plan, expected to cost roughly $2 trillion, according to comments from congressional leaders and aides, Trump administration officials and a draft of the bill as of 2:30 p.m. ET, compiled by NBC News and CNBC:
- Cash payments of up to $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for married couples and $500 per child, reduced if an individual makes more than $75,000 or a couple makes more than $150,000
- A $350 billion fund for small businesses to mitigate layoffs and support payroll
- $500 billion available to the Treasury Department to make loans, loan guarantees and investments to or in industries damaged by the pandemic
- Requires that recipients of loans do not buy back stock during the time the loan is outstanding, and that executives or employees who made more than $425,000 in 2019 do not get a raise for the next two years
- Requires group health plans and insurance providers to cover without cost-sharing any coronavirus preventive services
- An employee retention tax credit
- $240 billion in health-care relief
- $75 billion in aid for hospitals
- $20 billion for health care for veterans
- $20 billion for emergency public transportation relief
- $10 billion for airport relief
- $4.5 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- $50 billion in relief to airlines in the form of loans or grants, and another $8 billion for cargo carriers
- $17 billion in relief for unspecified "businesses critical to maintaining national security"
- Strengthened unemployment insurance, which could potentially add $600 per week for up to four months on top of what a state would give beneficiaries.
Congress has rushed to approve a relief plan as the coronvirus pandemic overwhelms health-care resources, wreaks havoc on the U.S. economy and forces widespread layoffs.
Compounding the urgency, multiple lawmakers have tested positive for the coronavirus, also known as the COVID-19 virus, forcing others to quarantine and consider the prospect of voting remotely.
As lawmakers hash out a deal, President Donald Trump on Tuesday morning ramped up pressure on them to pass an agreement and provide economic relief. In a tweet, he said "the longer it takes, the harder it will be to start up our economy. Our workers will be hurt!"
The coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in Wuhan, China, has spread to dozens of countries, with more than 387,382 confirmed cases worldwide and at least 16,767 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. There are at least 46,500 cases in the United States and at least 590 deaths, according to the latest tallies.
— CNBC's Kayla Tausche contributed to this report