Congress seemingly has no plans to renew or pass more coronavirus relief before the year ends
A whole bunch of COVID-19 relief provisions are set to expire at the end of the year, and Congress shows no sign of renewing them .
The last COVID-19 relief bill expired at the end of July, and since then, Congress and the White House have been locked in negotiations to pass a series of new provisions. But as Politico reports, talks have essentially ground to a halt, likely forcing Americans to make it through the rest of the year with no sign of stimulus checks or other relief.
After the pandemic began in March, the federal government sent $1,200 stimulus checks to Americans and extended boosted unemployment benefits to the record number of people who had lost their jobs. Those unemployment benefits expired in July, but two pandemic unemployment programs meant for gig workers and those who had maxed out their state's unemployment benefits have remained, and will until the end of 2020. Also expiring at the end of the year is a federal eviction moratorium, a variety of state and local funding, and small business debt relief, among other provisions, Politico notes.
The Democratic-controlled House passed its COVID-19 relief legislation months ago, but the GOP-held Senate still pushed for a bill totaling far less than the $2 trillion Democrats want. Months later, President Trump is in lame duck territory, the House and Senate remain committed to their own bills, and COVID-19 is spreading more than ever. As Politico's Jake Sherman points out, this means Americans will likely have to get through the holidays without another stimulus check, and will probably lose a range of benefits once the year ends.
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