COVID-19 GOVERNMENT RESPONSE

May 19: CBO Interim Economic Projections for 2020 and 2021
- CBO estimates that real gross domestic product will contract by 11 percent in the second quarter of this year, which is equivalent to a decline of 38 percent at an annual rate, and that the number of people employed will be almost 26 million lower than the number in the fourth quarter of 2019.
CRS: Global Economic Effects of COVID-19
Coronavirus Updates: NYTimes | WashPost | Politico | PBS | NPR | CNN | ABC | CBS | NBC
NBCNEWS.COM/REOPENS
CRS: Domestic Public Health Response to COVID-19: Current Status
May 18: Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Expedite Staffing for Pandemic Recovery Watchdog
CRS COVID-19 Homepage
[Back to Top of Page]

House adopts H.Res. 965 authorizing temporary remote voting by proxy in the House of Representatives; providing for official remote committee proceedings (hearings, markups, depositions); and directing the chair of the Committee on House Administration, in consultation with the ranking minority member, to study the feasibility of using technology to conduct remote voting in the House and to provide certification to the House upon a determination that such operable and secure technology exists. After certification, the Chair of the Rules Committee is directed to issue regulations on the implementation of remote voting and the Speaker is then authorized to notify the House that Members may cast their votes remotely during this public health emergency.
Rules Committee report

“CARES Act” HR 748, P.L. 116-136, 03/27/20
Bill Text | Senate Summary
CBO Cost Estimate: $1.722 trillion
- Although the act provides financial assistance totaling more than $2 trillion, the projected cost is less than that because some of that assistance is in the form of loan guarantees, which are not estimated to have a net effect on the budget.
[Back to Top of Page]

COVID-19 and Direct Payments to Individuals: Economic Impact Payments (EIPs) for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income Beneficiaries (4/29)
- “The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (P.L. 116-136) provides emergency relief measures in response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Section 2201 of the CARES Act provides recovery rebates for most individuals, structured as automatically advanced tax credits disbursed by the Treasury Department. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) refers to the payments made in 2020 as Economic Impact Payments (EIPs).” (source)
[Back to Top of Page]

May 15, 2020: House adopts H.Res. 965 authorizing temporary remote voting by proxy in the House of Representatives; providing for official remote committee proceedings (hearings, markups, depositions); and directing the chair of the Committee on House Administration, in consultation with the ranking minority member, to study the feasibility of using technology to conduct remote voting in the House and to provide certification to the House upon a determination that such operable and secure technology exists. After certification, the Chair of the Rules Committee is directed to issue regulations on the implementation of remote voting and the Speaker is then authorized to notify the House that Members may cast their votes remotely during this public health emergency | Rules Committee report
Constitutional Considerations of Remote Voting In Congress (4/14)
March 23, 2020: House Rules Committee Report examining voting options during the COVID-19 pandemic.
[Back to Top of Page]