Now only the signature of the head of state, who announced the White House on Friday, is missing.
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The stimulus package was approved just days before the current federal benefit program for millions of unemployed expired. Biden’s plan envisages extending the payment of weekly $ 300 until September. It would also set aside crisis resources for state and local authorities, schools, vaccine distribution, or coronavirus testing.
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The Senate made several significant changes to the original proposal and, for example, tightened the criteria for the payment of direct payments of up to $ 1,400 (CZK 31,000). The Senate has also failed to raise the federal minimum wage from the current $ 7.25 per hour to 15. But the package still includes more general measures to curb poverty in the United States, including an annual area benefit scheme for households with children.
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The currently approved bill introduces the fifth major set of measures to support the economy during the coronavirus crisis. The White House promotes it as a historic achievement that will have far-reaching positive effects. Republicans don’t like both the overall scale and the points they say are unrelated to the covid-19 pandemic.
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