More Than 200 Days Since the HEROES Act, McConnell’s Toothless Relief Proposal Is an Insult to Americans Struggling Amid Raging Pandemic and Worsening Economy

McConnell’s Bill Provides No Cash Payments, No Housing Assistance, No Health Care Protections, No Aid to State and Local Governments

McConnell, GOP Pushing For Shielding Corporations From Liability If Workers Become Infected On The Job

More Than 40 Million Americans Have Filed For Unemployment, 8 Million Have Fallen Into Poverty Since House Passed Relief In May And McConnell Refused To Act

When the House passed the HEROES Act more than 200 days ago, Americans were suffering. Nearly 1.5 million had been infected with the coronavirus, and more than 85,000 had died.  More than a million people were filing initial unemployment claims weekly. But Senate Republicans led by Mitch McConnell refused to act.

Now, those numbers have ballooned: More than 270,000 Americans have lost their lives, while more than 13 million have been infected  — cases accelerating as the holidays approach. Nearly 70 million people have filed unemployment benefits since the pandemic began, with eight million Americans slipping into poverty. Federal protections are set to expire as millions face evictions.

But rather than make up for lost time, Mitch McConnell is continuing to push a toothless “relief” bill that fails to meet the urgency of the worsening pandemic. McConnell’s new targeted proposal puts the welfare of businesses ahead of the public health of the American people, and fails to combat the worsening economic crisis. 

McConnell’s New Relief Proposal Does Not Include Direct Cash Payments for Families Struggling to Afford Basic Necessities 

• The Stimulus Package Proposed By McConnell On December 1 Does Not Include Direct Cash Payments To Americans. “Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday said that he wants to stick with a revised Republican, scaled-back stimulus bill. A leaked draft shows that the proposal does not include a second round of checks.” [Newsweek, 12/1/20]
• At Least 8 Million Americans Have Fallen Into Poverty Since May. “The number of Americans living in poverty grew by 8 million since May, according to a Columbia University study, which found an increase in poverty rates after early coronavirus relief ended without more to follow. Although the federal Cares Act, which gave Americans a one-time stimulus check of $1,200 and unemployed workers an extra $600 each week, was successful at offsetting growing poverty rates in the spring, the effects were short-lived, researchers found in the study published Thursday.” [NBC News, 10/16/20]
• More Than One-Third Of Americans Say There Are Living In A Household Where It Is Difficult To Afford Household Expenses. “Over one-third of Americans say they live in households where it is difficult to afford household expenses, including food, rent or mortgage, and student loans — the highest share in six weeks, according to the Census Household Survey.” [Axios, 11/30/20]
• One In Six Americans Is Facing Food Insecurity As The Pandemic Exacts Economic Toll. “An October report from Feeding America says about one in six Americans are food insecure, a result of growing unemployment and disruptions in the food supply chain… Feeding America also says the pandemic has reversed nearly a decade’s worth of progress made on reducing food insecurity.” [CBS, 11/30/20]

McConnell’s New Relief Proposal Does Not Provide Housing Assistance for Americans on the Verge of Eviction

• McConnell Does Not Mention Assistance Or Protections For Renters In The Description Of His Targeted Proposal. “In a description of his bill the Senator reportedly sent to fellow Republicans, McConnell does not mention continuing eviction protections.” [CNET, 12/2/20]
• Nearly 40 Million Americans Face Eviction Over The Next Several Months. “According to research by the Aspen Institute, nearly 40 million Americans could face eviction over the next several months. The only thing holding back the flood right now is the CDC’s eviction moratorium order and a patchwork of state and local protections for renters.” [Vox, 11/27/20]
• The National Energy Assistance Directors’ Associations Warned In Early October That Roughly 179 Million Americans Were At Risk Of Losing Power Or Other Utilities. “At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, many states acted quickly to ensure their residents would not lose their power or other utilities if their jobs or wages were slashed. Now, however, only 21 states and the District of Columbia still have such disconnection bans in place. That leaves roughly 179 million Americans at risk of losing service even as the economy continues sputtering, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association, which is tracking the moratoria. Millions more in nine other states are set to lose their protections starting Thursday and throughout the fall, the group found.” [Washington Post, 10/1/20]

McConnell’s New Relief Proposal Only Extends Unemployment Through January as Economy Worsens and Unemployment Remains at Record Levels

• McConnell’s Proposal Only Extends Unemployment Assistance Into January. “McConnell’s plan would extend some of the CARES unemployment aid for one month into January but does not set a dollar amount.” [CNET, 12/2/20]
• More Than 20 Million Americans Are Currently Collecting Unemployment Benefits. “The total number of people claiming benefits in all programs for the week ending November 7 was 20,452,223, an increase of 135,297 from the previous week. There were 1,487,844 persons claiming benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2019.” [Department Of Labor, Press Release, 11/21/20]
• More Than 778,000 Workers Filed For Unemployment Last Week While Approximately 68 Million Americans Have Filed Since March. “The number of people losing their jobs continues to increase as COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the United States. Last week, 778,000 workers filed for jobless claims as states impose additional lockdowns or stay-at-home orders. ‘Weekly unemployment insurance claims are moving in the wrong direction with the first back-to-back increases since July,’ said Robert Frick, corporate economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. ‘Together with a slower-than-expected drop in continuing claims, we’re seeing the effects of rapidly-rising COVID-19 cases across the country.’ Since the novel coronavirus emerged in the United States, approximately 68 million Americans filed for jobless claims.” [USA Herald, 11/25/20]
  
• The Number Of Americans Applying For Benefits Hovers Near Pre-Pandemic Records.
  “The number of Americans collecting and applying for unemployment benefits is hovering near pre-pandemic records. By some measures, the figure still exceeds any historical precedent. The volume reflects deep and sustained pain for workers, nearly nine months after the health and economic crisis began… Around 5.9 million filed a ‘continued claim’ for state unemployment insurance the week of Nov. 14, according to the Labor Department. Continued claims are a rough proxy for the number of people receiving benefits. Those figures are close to the prior peak — 6.5 million continued claims — set in March 2009 during the Great Recession.” [CNBC, 12/1/20]

McConnell’s New Relief Proposal Provides No Funding for State and Local Governments Struggling to Pay for First Responders, Essential Workers and Preparations for Vaccine Distribution

• The Stimulus Package Proposed By McConnell On December 1 Does Not Include Aid For State And Local Governments. “McConnell now circulating a plan with: – no state & local aid; – only 1 additional month in PUA & PEUC for jobless Americans; – no additional stimulus checks; – Sen. Cornyny’s proposed liability shield; – no money for transit agencies…among other non-starters for Dems.” [Twitter, @jstein_wapo, 12/1/20]
• 2,100 Cities Are Facing Budgets And Estimates Put The Total Impending Budget Shortfall For State And Local Governments At $500 Billion. “With the recent prolonged debate in Washington over additional coronavirus relief funding, state and local governments are in a budget crunch. Approximately 2,100 cities are facing significant budget deficits this year, with 96% of these budget shortfalls due to unexpected drops in revenue attributable to the coronavirus. Estimates put the total impending budget shortfall for state and local governments at $500 billion.” [Forbes, 11/3/20]
• States Face Sharp Budget Cuts To Social Services, Corrections, Education If Aid Is Not Provided. “Deficits have already prompted tax hikes and cuts to education, corrections and parks. State workers are being laid off and are taking pay cuts, and the retirement benefits for police, firefighters, teachers and other government workers are under more pressure.” [Wall Street Journal, 10/28/20]
• Without Federal Funding, States Will Struggle To Distribute Coronavirus Vaccines. “State health officials are expressing frustration about a lack of federal financial support as they face orders to prepare to receive and distribute the first doses of a coronavirus vaccine by Nov. 15, even though one is not likely to be approved until later this year. The officials say they don’t have enough money to pay for the enormous and complicated undertaking.” [Washington Post, 10/30/20]

McConnell’s Bill Provides Unnecessary Liability Protections to Businesses and Corporations Who Endanger Their Workers While Throwing Families Under the Bus

• McConnell’s Bill Includes Liability Protections For Businesses That Preempt State Laws. “The bipartisan Senate plan sets out a six-month moratorium on some coronavirus-related lawsuits against organizations, giving states enough time to create their own liability protections, the Senators said. McConnell’s liability protections would be more sweeping and preempt state laws.” [CNET, 12/2/20]
• 38 States Have Already Enacted Liability Laws, While Very Few Liability Lawsuits Have Been Brought By Those Infected With The Virus. In a floor speech, Senator Dick Durbin said: “38 states have already enacted laws relating to COVID-19 liability. The others can certainly do it if they wish, if they think they need it. That has resulted in some things which are worth reporting. We are told that there is a tsunami of lawsuits, COVID-19 lawsuits that are being brought against individuals and businesses. It turns out nothing could be further from the truth…. Out of the some 12.5 million to 13 million Americans who have been infected with the COVID virus, only 6,273 lawsuits have been brought in the entire nation in the year 2020 that mention the term COVID-19 or coronavirus.” [C-Span, Senate Session, 12/1/20]
• Though Liability Lawsuits Are Uncommon, Corporate Protections Can Threaten Worker Safety.  “Labor advocates argue that by making the standard of proof [for liability] so high, the Republicans’ [July] bill grants ‘blanket immunity’ to public and private organizations, all but eliminating their responsibility for their workers’ safety. ‘It would essentially make it impossible to sue for a COVID-related injury,’ says David Vladeck, a law professor at Georgetown University who testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in May… But litigation like this isn’t very common, in part because it’s often costly for everyone involved, and in part because it’s hard for workers to win.” [Time, 7/30/2020]

Even Republicans Agree That McConnell’s Bill Isn’t Good Enough

• Senator Susan Collins (R-ME): “If [The Bill]’s Identical To What He Brought Forth This Summer, Then It’s Going To Be A Partisan Bill, And That’s Not Going To Become Law. And I Want A Bill That’s Going To Become Law.” “GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who worked with her colleagues on the bipartisan plan, raised objections to his efforts on a private conference call on Tuesday, according to a source on the call. She later seemed cool to McConnell’s push when asked by reporters in the Capitol. ‘The advantage of our compromise bill is it has bipartisan, bicameral support,’ Collins said. ‘And we’ll see what the leader introduces. But if it’s identical to what he brought forth this summer, then it’s going to be a partisan bill, and that’s not going to become law. And I want a bill that’s going to become law.’” [CNN, 12/1/20]

SIDE BY SIDE: McConnell’s Targeted Relief Bill Fails to Meet Urgency of the Crisis