Follow-up: What Pelosi wants in next relief package.

WASHINGTON — The House hasn’t even voted on a $2 trillion coronavirus economic recovery bill, but Speaker Nancy Pelosi is already pivoting to what she wants in a followup relief package that many lawmakers believe will be needed.

Pelosi, DSan Francisco, said Thursday that the next bill to confront the pandemic must include paid family and medical leave for more workers, an increase in foodstamp benefits, and more money for states and cities whose budgets are being drained fighting the virus.

She spoke hours after the Senate unanimously passed a $2 trillion stimulus, the largest economic recovery bill in American history. Pelosi said the House would pass the bill Friday with “strong bipartisan support.”

Pelosi said the next stimulus package should be negotiated with “the four corners,” Democratic and Republican leadership in both chambers. But her goals are likely to face opposition from the White House and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, RKy., who previously called many of Democrats’ proposals an “ideological wish list.”

“There are so many things that we didn’t get in any of these bills yet in a way that we need to,” Pelosi said in a Capitol news conference. She set these goals for the next relief package:

Expand paid family and medical leave:

Pelosi said she wants a “better definition of who qualifies” for paid leave under a previous bill that created an extended leave program.

A coronavirus relief bill that President Trump signed March 18 requires employers to provide 10 weeks of paid emergency family leave, of up to $200 a day, for parents caring for a child whose school is closed. Workers must take two weeks of unpaid leave before the program kicks in.

Democrats originally proposed a broader family and medical leave program that would cover people who are sick with the coronavirus, quarantined or caring for an ill family member.

The paid family leave program also includes a major loophole that many Democrats want to close: Companies with at least 500 employees are exempt. They failed during negotiations on the $2 trillion bill, and on Thursday, Democratic Sens. Kamala Harris of California and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York wrote a letter to 36 large employers urging them to offer paid leave voluntarily.

“Extraordinary times call for extraordinary leadership,” Harris and Gillibrand wrote. “We implore you to use your unique position as a leader in the business community to protect our workers and protect our nation.”

Increase foodstamp benefits:

Republicans blocked Democrats’ attempt to increase nutrition assistance to lowincome families in the $2 trillion package. Pelosi said Democrats want a 15% increase in funding for food stamps “at this very fragile time for many families.”

More money for state and local governments:

Pelosi said the current bill, which provides $150 billion to help states, cities and counties, isn’t enough. She said California, like many states, has seen its large budget surplus decimated as the economy slows.

“We’re just not doing enough for state and local government,” Pelosi said. “That’s just the way it is.”

Stronger workplacesafety protections:

Pelosi said it’s “essential to life” to strengthen Occupational Safety and Health Administration rules, which could include adding requirements to supply face masks and other protective gear.

Free coronavirus treatment:

Pelosi said it’s not enough that the federal government paid for free testing in a previous relief bill. She said people should be able to get tested and treated without facing a “huge deductible” or copayment.

“We said free testing, free testing, free testing,” Pelosi said. “But with free testing is the visit to the doctor’s office, the treatment that goes with it.”

The speaker said she plans to stay in Washington to negotiate the next bill after Friday’s vote on the $2 trillion package. Lawmakers are expected to take an extended recess until late April.

McConnell has not laid out GOP priorities for a followup bill, though Republicans are expected to keep pushing for a payroll tax cut. McConnell told reporters that the Senate would remain “nimble” and consider another vote before its recess ends April 20.

“We’re just not doing enough for state and local government. That’s just the way it is.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi