Three Democratic Senators, including two former 2020 presidential candidates, are looking to offer more assistance to families as the coronavirus pandemic continues to batter at the United States, pushing legislation to offer monthly payments to Americans.
According to Politico, Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass), are expected to release their Monthly Economic Crisis Support Act on Friday, looking to offer Americans $2,000 per month until the economic crisis brought on by the pandemic starts to wane.
To be more specific, the bill proposes a monthly $2,000 check to individuals who make less than $120,000. Married couples who file taxes jointly will receive $4,000, and the legislation will also allocate $2,000 for each child up to three.
Harris noted that Congress’ efforts to soften the blow of the coronavirus is not “nearly enough to meet the needs of this historic crisis,” Politico notes, and the senators’ plans for relief are much more robust than the $1,200 stimulus check that is still making its way to Americans.
On top of that, the senators are pushing for the payments to be retroactive to March, and to continue until at about three months after the Health and Human Services Department signal that the health emergency is truly over. The proposal also ensures that the money would be protected from debt collectors, and would be delivered to eligible individuals regardless of whether they have a Social Security Number or filed taxes last year.
“Congress has a responsibility to make sure that every working-class household in America receives a $2,000 emergency payment a month for each family member,” Sanders said, according to the report.