On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of lawmakers unveiled legislation for a new coronavirus stimulus worth more than $900 billion, hoping to break months of deadlock between the House and Senate. The group specified their “COVID Emergency Relief Framework,” which calls for $288 billion in small-business support and $180 billion for extended unemployment insurance, among other fiscal appropriations.
The new proposal follows months of failed negotiations between House Democrats and Republican White House officials. The bipartisan group said the pitch is a way to resolve the months-long deadlock between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Republican leaders, who have not wavered for months on their separate proposals.
An agreement on a new stimulus plan is becoming increasingly urgent, as part of the $2 trillion CARES Act are nearing their expiration, including expanded unemployment insurance and eviction moratoriums, which will vanish at the end of the year.