Media Contact: Patrick Wright -- Patrick.Wright@mail.house.gov
Washington, D.C. — Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr. was proud to vote for the American Rescue Plan today to support New Jersey residents and all Americans during the COVID-19 health and economic crisis. The bill was a success for Rep. Payne, Jr. because he fought for efforts to get direct funding to New Jersey and local communities throughout the 10th District.
The bill (H.R. 1319) is a $1.9 trillion emergency COVID-19 stimulus package that would provide needed financial aid to American families, states and local communities, and small businesses as well as additional aid to increase vaccination rates to protect Americans from COVID-19. It includes a $1,400 payment to low and middle-income Americans and an additional $400 per week for unemployed workers during this public health crisis. It would provide $350 billion to support states, cities and tribal territories for their efforts to protect and support their residents, including $9.4 billion for the state of New Jersey and local communities.
“I was proud to vote for this bill to help struggling residents of New Jersey and Americans nationwide deal with the effects of this coronavirus,” said Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr. “With several new vaccines on the market, we are getting closer to the herd immunity necessary to reopen our society safely. But Americans still need assistance to pay for food, housing and medicine during these difficult economic times. I hope the Senate approves it and President Biden signs it into public law quickly.”
The bill would provide more funds to defeat COVID-19 and safely reopen every school. It includes more than $20 billion to increase vaccine production and $49 billion to increase COVID-19 testing and tracing. For schools, it provides more than $130 billion to improve ventilation systems, reduce class sizes, hire additional health staff, and guarantee there are enough masks and other protective equipment for both students and staff.
In addition, it adds $7.25 billion to the popular Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses pay bills and retain workers during the crisis and includes $25 billion for a new Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which provides aid to the food service industry. It provides $20.3 billion for rental assistance and almost $10 billion for mortgage assistance for Americans at risk of losing their housing. Finally, it would raise the nation’s minimum wage from the current $7.25 per hour to $15 per hour in the next four years. This stimulus bill is the sixth one passed since March 2020 to help Americans during this COVID-19 global pandemic.
Original source can be found here.
