What’s next after congressional stalemate puts nation’s needs on hold

With Congress away for political conventions and campaigns, the electorate is waiting for more than the November elections. Voters are wondering how and when Congress is going to address the urgent needs facing the country at this challenging time.

How we got here

The end of July brought many of the pandemic relief measures Congress had enacted in the spring to an abrupt end:

• The weekly $600 unemployment insurance (UI) benefits supplement stopped;
• The moratorium on evictions from federally supported housing ceased; and
• Borrowers should have already spent their original Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to qualify for loan forgiveness.

The end of July also brought an effective end to the congressional negotiations to address the potentially perilous economic needs faced by those who were no longer receiving the federal assistance.

Back in mid-May, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a supplemental COVID-19 relief bill, the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, which would have maintained the previously enacted benefits and expanded support to hospitals, healthcare workers, schools, and state and local governments. The estimated cost was around $3 trillion. The Senate never took up the bill, nor did it propose any alternative.