Biden and GOP's COVID stimulus proposals: How do the plans compare?
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A group of 10 Senate Republicans released new details of a roughly $618 billion COVID-19 relief measure on Monday morning, pushing for about one-third of the spending that President Biden maintains is needed to address the economic fallout from the pandemic.
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The coalition of more moderate GOP senators, led by Sen. Susan Collins, sent a letter to Biden on Sunday, seeking a meeting to begin bipartisan negotiations on the next relief bill. The outreach came as their Democratic colleagues were preparing to move forward on passing another massive stimulus bill using their simple majority via a complicated process known as budget reconciliation.
Biden invited the senators to the White House for a meeting that is scheduled to take place at 5 p.m. ET on Monday.
GOP SENATORS UNVEIL DETAILS OF $618B VIRUS RELIEF PROPOSAL AHEAD OF MEETING WITH BIDEN
White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that Biden is "happy to hear" from the Republican group, but believes the risk is "going too small" on relief measures. Today's meeting, she added, is not a "forum to make or accept an offer."
"He also feels strongly about the need to make sure the size of the package meets this moment," Psaki said.
Take a closer look at how the two proposals compare:
Unemployment
Biden's proposal increases the supplemental unemployment benefits to $400 a week and would extend it through the end of September. The Republican measure would extend jobless aid, which is currently poised to expire in mid-March, by $300 a week through June.
In total, some 18.28 million Americans were receiving some kind of jobless benefit through Jan. 9.
Stimulus checks
Biden's plan calls for sending a one-time $1,400 direct payment to eligible Americans, though he has not laid out specific income cutoffs yet.
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It would also expand check eligibility to include adult dependents who were previously excluded from receiving the money, including college students and individuals with disabilities, and would include households with mixed immigration statuses after the first $1,200 payment that Congress approved in the March CARES Act left out the spouses of undocumented immigrants who did not have Social Security numbers.
The Republican plan would send $1,000 checks to Americans earning less than $40,000. The payments would be tapered for higher earners and cut off completely for individuals who earn more than $50,000, a change from the previous payments approved by Congress.
COVID-19 vaccination and testing
Both Biden's and the Republican plan allocate $160 billion toward fighting COVID-19, including creating a national vaccination program and expanding testing.
Schools
The Republican plan calls for $20 billion for K-12 schools, while Biden's plan includes $170 billion for schools and universities.
State and local governments
Biden wants to provide state, local and territorial governments with $350 billion in emergency funding to help them keep front-line workers employed and aid with vaccine distribution, COVID-19 testing, reopening schools and "maintaining other vital services."
Funding for state and local governments emerged as one of the most contentious issues during nearly a half-year of relief negotiations between Democrats and Republicans, who decried the proposal as a "blue-state bailout." Unable to compromise on the issue, lawmakers eventually decided to exclude state and local government aid from the $900 billion relief deal they passed in December.
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Republicans did not include funding for state and local government in their relief measure.
Minimum wage
Under Biden's proposal, the minimum wage, which has been stuck at $7.25 per hour for the past decade, would increase to $15 per hour. The measure would also end the tipped minimum wage and sub-minimum wage for people with disabilities.
The Republican plan would not change the minimum wage.
Temporary tax credit expansion
Biden wants to increase the child tax credit to $3,000 for children under the age of 17, and $3,600 for children under six. Families are normally entitled to up to $2,000 annually in refundable tax credits per child. He also would make the credit fully refundable.
He also proposed raising the maximum Earned Income Tax Credit for childless adults from $530 to about $1,500. He would also raise the income limit for the credit from about $16,000 to $21,000 and expand the age range of who's eligible by eliminating a cap on older workers and expanding eligibility for younger Americans.
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The Republican plan would not expand tax credits.
Small business relief
The president's plan calls for about $50 billion in funding for small business assistance, including a $15 billion program separate from the Paycheck Protection Program. The proposal would also make a $35 billion investment in some state, local, tribal and non-profit financing programs that can provide low-interest loans and venture capital to help small businesses.
The GOP measure, meanwhile, would also allocate about $50 billion for small businesses, including an additional $40 billion through the Paycheck Protection Program.
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