Markey ‘100% confident’
Sure virus relief bill will pass, says wage hike can still be done later
Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey said he’s “100 percent confident” the House of Representatives will pass the massive coronavirus relief package after progressives lost out on boosting the federal minimum wage through the bill.
Senate Democrats narrowly passed the $1.9 trillion bill by a 50-49 margin over the weekend. No Republicans voted in favor.
“I am 100 percent confident that the House will pass this bill,” Markey said during a virtual press conference on Sunday, adding that the $1.9 trillion in relief is “going to go within the month to individuals and small businesses all across this country.”
He noted the urgency of the legislation, citing enhanced unemployment benefits that are set to run out on March 14 if the bill doesn’t move across the goal line. A compromise among Senate Democrats extended $300 per week jobless benefits through Sept. 6.
“We must pass this legislation now, and I’m 100 percent confident that the House of Representatives will join the Senate in passing it and putting it onto Joe Biden’s desk by the end of this coming week,” Markey said.
The package includes $1,400 direct cash payment per adult and an additional $1,400 per dependent for low- and moderate-income households. That would phase out for individual incomes between $75,000 and $80,000, and couples between $150,000 and $160,000. Those ceilings were higher in the House version.
Markey called the $1,400 checks a “vital down payment to help families pay rent, put food on the table, buy diapers and medication.”
He said direct cash assistance “shouldn’t be limited to just this latest check,” adding there should be recurring payments and an expansion on the number of people who can “obtain this tangible benefit.”
Progressives suffered a defeat on Friday when eight Democrats opposed a House-approved boost in the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025.
People working 40 hours a week who are still living below the poverty line “makes no sense whatsoever,” Markey said. They will “continue to build this case” for $15 an hour and have conversations with the senators who don’t agree with it, he said.
“This is just the beginning,” Markey said. “We will not stop until we pass at least a $15 federal minimum wage. We will not stop until we have recurring payments.”
Other components of the relief package include $20 billion for improving vaccine efforts; $25.2 billion for health equity in underserved communities and communities of color; $350 billion for state, municipal and tribal governments; $25 billion in a new Restaurant Revitalization Fund; and $170 billion to help K-12 schools and higher-education institutions reopen safely.