coronavirus relief bill
AG Jeff Landry sues U.S. Treasury over Rescue Plan mandate
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry announced Tuesday that he joined a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department, arguing against a provision in the American Rescue Plan Act that prohibits states from using federal pandemic relief money to cut taxes. Landry joined the lawsuit with two other Republican attorneys general from Mississippi and Texas. The filing […]
Unemployment bills compete for deep cuts or slow increases in benefits
State lawmakers will have at least two competing unemployment bills to consider that would change unemployment insurance in Louisiana, bringing either deep cuts or slow increases in benefits to out-of-work residents: House Bill 610 would increase unemployment benefits to rates in line with the rest of the country, while Senate Bill 225 would bring deep cuts […]
GOP attorneys general slam tax cut ban in stimulus law as ‘unprecedented and unconstitutional’
WASHINGTON — Republican attorneys general from 21 states are attacking the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief law as an “unprecedented and unconstitutional infringement” on state sovereignty because it restricts tax cuts by states. The attorneys general in a letter to the Treasury Department threatened to take action against the Biden administration over the law’s tax cut provision. […]
States question whether new federal stimulus law rules out tax cuts
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s massive pandemic stimulus law pumps a welcome infusion of federal aid into state and local government coffers — but one brief section is raising questions about whether states are barred from cutting their own taxes if they accept the federal help. The Senate added language to the COVID-19 relief package prohibiting […]
Millions of American parents will soon get a monthly allowance: 4 questions answered
The federal government’s US$1.9 trillion relief package Congress passed on March 10 will temporarily expand the child tax credit. This credit, currently pegged at up to $2,000 a year per child until they turn 17, will instead total $3,600 for children under 6 and $3,000 for kids up to the age of 18 over the […]
Congress clears giant $1.9T emergency relief package for Biden’s signature
WASHINGTON — A sweeping $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus package is headed to President Joe Biden’s desk after the U.S. House passed the latest pandemic relief measure Wednesday on a party-line vote. The massive bill includes a new round of $1,400 direct checks for many Americans, as well as an extension of expanded unemployment checks to assist […]
During pandemic, Louisiana’s children move from bad to worse
Louisiana children are suffering. They are hungry. They don’t have the tools needed for remote learning. And their families can’t pay their bills. A recent Save the Children report ranks our state dead last when it comes to protecting and providing for our children during the pandemic. And this state wasn’t protecting our children before […]
Senate passes coronavirus relief aid; bill now returns to the House
The U.S. Senate passed President Joe Biden’s nearly $2 trillion stimulus plan Saturday afternoon after wrangling over an amendment to trim unemployment benefits derailed the bill’s passage for nearly an entire day. The Senate version, which does not include a federal minimum wage hike and puts limits on the funding for state and local governments, […]
Senate imposes limits on aid for state, local governments in COVID relief bill
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to begin debate on President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill, after drafting a number of revisions that, among other changes, tweak the aid intended for state and local governments. The legislation approved in the House outlines $350 billion in direct aid to state, local governments, territories […]
GOP opposition to state and local aid remains as Senate heads toward vote on COVID bill
WASHINGTON — As Democrats seek to send President Joe Biden their latest $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill, federal lawmakers remain deeply divided on the question of whether state and local governments need another infusion of federal aid. Supporters of the bill — including numerous Republican mayors — say the answer is a clear “yes.” They argue […]
Sprawling $1.9T COVID-19 relief bill passed by the U.S. House
WASHINGTON—The U.S. House on a nearly party-line vote passed President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion pandemic aid package early Saturday, in a rush to both boost COVID-19 vaccine funding and get legislation to the president’s desk before unemployment benefits expire in mid-March. The package, dubbed the American Rescue Plan, passed 219-212. It includes a gradual increase […]
Proposed $15-an-hour minimum wage would boost paychecks in the South
WASHINGTON—A gradual increase in the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour would increase the pay of low-income workers across the U.S. but particularly in much of the South, researchers and experts predict. Florida recently voted to increase its minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026, but the Sunshine State is an outlier. Georgia, […]