American Rescue Plan Act Signed with IFPTE Members' Top Priorities Included
President Biden's signing of the American Rescue Plan Act this week enacts a number of key policies that IFPTE members and staff have advocated for over the last year. The enacted legislation provides $1.9 trillion of economic relief to help local communities, workers, families, and maintain jobs in parts of the economy severely impacted by the pandemic.
The American Rescue Plan Act commits to supporting public services through $350 billion to state and local governments; $30.4 billion for public transit agencies; supports aerospace manufacturing jobs through a payroll support program; provides $125 billion for public school’s resources and $36.9 billion for higher education; a 15% increase in nutrition assistance to low-income households, and $41.6 billion in housing, homeowner and rental assistance.
Among those urging Senate passage of the American Rescue Plan Act were Local 21 members and leaders who phone-banked households to drive support for the bill's state and local funding provisions as well as highlight the urgency of passing the PRO Act labor law reform. Although the Senate considered reducing the state and local funding amounts, public pressure played a significant role in ensuring that lawmakers understood that government services and public employees providing frontline response and relief during the pandemic must not be shortchanged.
Also included in the American Rescue Plan Act is $3 billion to support jobs in the domestic aircraft manufacturing supply chain. This section of the bill was shaped and supported by SPEEA-IFPTE Local 2001 and had bipartisan Congressional support as well as the backing of aerospace employers and labor unions. The bill also extends payroll support for airline industry workers.
Workers who have lost employment income and health coverage will benefit from a 100% COBRA subsidy for insurance premiums, the extension of pandemic unemployment assistance, and a $300 per week pandemic unemployment compensation.
Federal employees will have available to them 15 weeks of COVID-related emergency leave, capped at $1,400 per week, as well as presumption of workplace illness in the event of COVID infection. The bill also extends tax credits for employers providing 80 hours of emergency family and medical leave.
Finally, this bill marks a significant step towards addressing income inequality and child poverty by introducing a new child tax credit of up to $3,600 per child under 6, expanding the earned income tax credit, expanding federal support for childcare, and direct payments of $1,400 to individual tax filers reporting income under $75,000 and joint tax filers reporting income under $150,000 on their most recent tax returns.
With many key provisions in the American Rescue Plan Act expiring in early September, IFTPE will continue to track the implementation of this bill and push for continued economic relief in the months ahead.