President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue plan into effect on Thursday, March 11, 2020, about seven months ago.
The bill has provided a variety of economic benefits to struggling Americans, including the third round of stimulus checks worth up to $1,400, the Child Tax Credit as monthly payments to parents with eligible co-dependents, stimulus checks for struggling homeowners, and the emergency rental assistance program for struggling renters.
However, progressive legislators and common Americans say that this year's bill is insufficient; subsequent rounds of stimulus checks or regular monthly payments will be required until the COVID-19 pandemic is over.
New stimulus check ignites as unemployment rates increase
The campaign for fourth stimulus checks and/or recurring payments has been underway for months. But many have argued that it is improbable now that the Biden Administration's attention has turned to the infrastructure package, Penn Live reported.
Although last week's unemployment rates increased by 16,000 to 351,000 from the previous week, Yahoo Finance reports that rising unemployment and economic instability have re-ignited calls for the federal government to offer additional stimulus money.
Brian Gardner is Stifel's top Washington policy strategist, and he apparently authored research claiming that the administration is just not interested in further stimulus checks.
Could rising unemployment and the Delta variant causing COVID-19 cases to surge again be the impetus progressive legislators in Washington require for additional stimulus money? Time will tell. The push, on the other hand, isn't slowing down.
Progressive legislators have sent letters urging the White House to consider offering more direct aid to Americans.
A Change.org petition for $2,000 monthly recurring payments from the federal government to assist millions of Americans is also gaining steam. The petition now has over 2.9 million signatures, but it needs 3 million to be considered a major campaign on the platform.
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Is another relief payment coming?
The purpose of the relief payments was to lessen the economic burden of COVID-19 while also supporting the economy. The American Rescue Plan initiated the third round of relief payments in March.
Over the next several months, about 169 million individuals got up to $1,400 each. That was virtually all of the $422 billion put aside. The stimulus payments came nine months after the $1,200 payments from the pandemic's early days, and they closely followed the $600 installments from January.
And because there were fewer places to spend money during much of the pandemic, as well as three stimulus payments, many Americans saved more than they would have otherwise. The personal saving rate soared to 33.7 percent in April 2020 and has stayed much higher than pre-pandemic levels ever since.
However, the Biden administration has other priorities. One of the most important is infrastructure. The planned American Jobs Plan, which intended to rebuild roads, restore bridges, eliminate lead pipes, expand the internet, update the country's electric grid, and other initiatives, was estimated to cost $2.3 trillion.
Biden and a bipartisan group of Senators reached an agreement on a $1 trillion infrastructure package. The resultant bipartisan legislation, now known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, was approved by the Senate in early August.
A fourth stimulus check is not included in either the original version or the bipartisan measure that was passed. One might theoretically be added when the measure is debated in the House. Given the cost, this is improbable, as per CBS Philly.
Related Article: Fourth Stimulus Check: Biden Administration Announces New Payments, Who's Getting One?
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