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Civic Register
| 3.27.20

What's the Status of the 'Phase 3' Coronavirus Relief Bill?

Do you support the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act?

UPDATE - 3/27/20 (4:50pm EDT): President Donald Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748) into law at an Oval Office signing ceremony for the “phase three” coronavirus relief bill Friday afternoon. The president tweeted:

“I just signed the CARES Act, the single biggest economic relief package in American History ― twice as large as any relief bill ever enacted. At $2.2 Trillion Dollars, this bill will deliver urgently-needed relief for our nation’s families, workers, and businesses.”

This bill’s enactment comes after a busy few days in the Capitol: 

  • The Senate passed the CARES Act on a 96-0 vote late Wednesday night.
  • The House passed the CARES Act on a voice vote Friday afternoon.

It’s likely that the CARES Act won’t be the last legislation Congress considers amid the ongoing coronavirus “pandemic” as discussions are already beginning about a “phase four” bill. In the meantime, here’s a look back at the “phase one” and “phase two” bills:

UPDATE - 3/27/20 (1:20pm EDT): The House passed the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748) on a voice vote Friday, sending the bill to President Donald Trump’s to be enacted into law later in the day. The bill passed the Senate on a 96-0 vote Wednesday night.

At a projected price tag of more than $2 trillion, the CARES Act is one of, if not the single most expensive pieces of legislation in U.S. history. It will provide direct cash payments to most Americans, forgivable loans for small businesses, liquidity for larger corporations with oversight of that assistance, plus resources for healthcare providers, and state & local governments as they address the coronavirus crisis.

Despite the broad bipartisan support for the bill evidenced by its unanimous passage in the Senate, there were some procedural shenanigans that preceded its approval on the House floor. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) used the “magic minute” available to her as a leader to deliver lengthy remarks on the floor before the voice vote was held to allow as many lawmakers as were able to arrive in the chamber to establish a quorum with 216 members in attendance. After the presiding chair recognized that the bill passed on a voice vote, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) requested a recorded vote. 

Typically, such a request would be granted and the vote would occur later in the day or the next day. But given the number of House lawmakers unable to return to the Capitol from recess due to local “stay at home orders” or elevated risks to their personal health, Speaker Pelosi & House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) made a joint effort to block the recorded vote to spare them from being recorded as “not voting” in the final record. 

So after Massie requested a recorded vote, but less than one-fifth of the members in attendance did so, which defeated the request and the presiding chair, Rep. Anthony Brown (D-MD), declined to grant his request. At that point Massie raised a point of order that a quorum wasn’t present as required by the Constitution, which the chair overruled on the basis that a sufficient quorum was present. 

UPDATE - 3/27/20 (11:35am EDT): The House is nearing the end of its three hours of debate on the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748) before it will attempt to pass the bill by voice vote.

It's possible that a member may request a recorded vote on the bill, or raise a point of order noting the absence of a quorum in the House as required by the Constitution. That would require the House to hold a recorded vote later today or tomorrow and ensure that it has a quorum of members (216 representatives) in attendance.

It's unclear how many lawmakers are in attendance today, as the House had been on recess since March 14th, but there are several dozen members who are seated on the floor (for the most part, practicing social distancing) & delivering remarks on the bill.

UPDATE - 3/26/20 (11:59am EDT): Here's where things stand with the the "phase 3" coronavirus relief bill, known as the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748):

  • The Senate passed the CARES Act on a bipartisan 96-0 vote Wednesday night.
  • The House is expected to attempt to pass the CARES Act by voice vote Friday morning after two hours of debate.
  • If it's approved by voice vote as planned, the CARES Act can be signed into law by President Donald Trump as early as Friday.

It's possible that the House, which has been on recess since March 14th, may be delayed in passing the bill by voice vote. Since it hasn't received unanimous consent from all members, the House on the floor will attempt to pass it by voice vote. But it only takes one member to request a recorded vote on the bill, which would likely require some members to return to the Capitol for a vote Friday or Saturday. Additionally, a member could raise a point of order that a quorum isn't present in the House as required by the Constitution, which would require at least 216 members to be present for the vote.

UPDATE - 3/25/20 (11:50pm EDT): SENATE UNANIMOUSLY PASSES "PHASE 3" CORONAVIRUS RELIEF BILL: The Senate passed the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act on an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 96-0.

The bill now needs the approval of the House before it can reach President Donald Trump's desk to be signed into law. The House, which has been on recess since March 14th, will be in a pro forma session Thursday and will take up the bill on Friday.

Because of limited flight options, members under quarantine, state "stay at home" orders, and a lack of rules allowing for House members to vote remotely, the House is expected to pass the bill by voice vote. Under typical circumstances, the bill would receive a recorded vote, but the difficulties facing many members in reaching the Capitol make attempting to recall the lawmakers who can make the trip an impractical solution given the risk of violating social distancing guidelines.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) announced that the House will take steps "to ensure that those who are unable to return to Washington may express their views on this legislation remotely." This is being done to prevent lawmakers who would prefer to take a recorded vote from requesting one.

UPDATE - 3/25/20 (11:17pm EDT): The amendment offered by Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) to the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act failed to meet the necessary 60-vote threshold on a party-line 48-48 vote.

The amendment vote was mostly along party-lines, although there were several defections: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) was the lone Democrat to vote in favor; while Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) — the latter back on the floor for the first time today following a coronavirus quarantine — voted against the amendment.

Four senators didn't vote: Sen. John Thune (R-SD); Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who tested positive for coronavirus and is quarantined; and both Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) who are in coronavirus quarantines.

The Senate is voting now on passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act

UPDATE - 3/25/20 (10:20pm EDT): The Senate will soon vote on the bipartisan "phase 3" coronavirus relief bill known as the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. At about 10:30pm EDT, the Senate will take two votes:

  • An amendment to revise the bill's temporary Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program to ensure that beneficiaries don't receive weekly benefits that exceed the average weekly wages that were used to determine their benefit amount.
  • Final passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Both votes will require 60-votes to succeed. The amendment, offered by Sens. Ben Sasse (R-NE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tim Scott (R-SC), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Ted Cruz (R-TX), is expected to fail.

UPDATE - 3/25/20 (8:50pm EDT): The Senate has completed the process of drafting the bipartisan "phase 3" coronavirus economic relief bill, which topped out at 880 pages, and will take a vote on passage of the bill tonight. Read the Coronavirus Aid, Recovery, and Economic Security (CARES) Act here.

A time for the passage vote hasn't been finalized yet, but before the passage vote there will be a vote on at least one amendment.

Offered by Sens. Ben Sasse (R-NE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tim Scott (R-SC), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) that would modify the bill's temporary Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program to ensure that beneficiaries don't receive weekly benefits that exceed the average weekly wages that were used to determine their benefit amount.

UPDATE - 3/25/20 (11:20am EDT): The Senate is still completing the final legislative text of the bipartisan "phase 3" coronavirus economic relief bill ahead of a planned vote later today.

While it's still unclear when the Senate will vote on passage of the package, there is some more clarity about when the House will be available to vote on sending it to the president's desk.

The House of Representatives gaveled in and quickly gaveled out after a roughly two-minute pro forma session Wednesday, and will next be in session Thursday at 11am Eastern. Had the House leadership expected to vote on the relief bill today, they would've gone into recess "subject to the call of the chair" after gaveling in. Instead, members will be able to spend their Wednesday reviewing the Senate's bill while they await its passage.

UPDATE - 3/25/20 (1:50am EDT) - SENATE & WHITE HOUSE REACH A DEAL: After Tuesday began with the Senate “on the 2-yard line” of a compromise on the “phase 3” coronavirus economic relief package, a bipartisan team negotiators from the Senate & White House crossed the proverbial goal-line to deliver a deal at around 1am Wednesday morning. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) & Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) took to the floor to lay out the next steps for passing the roughly $2 trillion relief package:

  • The Senate will reconvene at 12pm Wednesday.
  • A vote on final passage is expected to occur at a time to be determined in the afternoon or evening.

Negotiators have already drafted parts of the final version of the bill, and are in agreement on the portions of the deal that are still being turned into legislative text. The bill should be available in its entirety later Wednesday morning, and we’ll have a summary of it for you as soon as possible.

UPDATE - 3/24/20 (10:55am EDT): There is growing optimism from the key negotiators that a deal on the "phase 3" coronavirus economic relief package will be reached today.

Before they left the Capitol last night, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin & Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said there were only a few details left to resolve, and that they may be able to wrap up negotiations Tuesday morning.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) struck a similar note in his opening remarks on the Senate floor, saying "I believe we are on the 5-yard line... we are very close." And House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said on CNBC that Senate Democrats "have done a great job" and that there is "a real optimism that we can get something done in the next few hours."

If a deal is reached, it will take some time to produce the final legislative text, but Senate could vote as soon as tonight on passage of the coronavirus relief bill if senators grant unanimous consent to do so.

UPDATE - 3/23/20 (10:30pm EDT): No further votes are expected in the Senate tonight as bipartisan negotiations continue on a coronavirus relief bill.

Following Senate Democrats' second vote in as many days to block a procedural motion that would've allowed the Senate to bring up a compromise bill more quickly without unanimous consent, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) re-filed the motion. Under regular order, the earliest the motion could be reconsidered is 1am Wednesday morning, although if a deal is reached a unanimous consent agreement could allow the Senate to consider the motion or the compromise bill sooner.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) introduced a $2.5 trillion coronavirus relief bill that you can read more about here. House Democratic leaders haven't indicated if, or when, they will attempt to pass the bill. House members are still back in their districts on recess, and no announcement has been made to recall them for a vote as the House isn't permitted to vote remotely.

UPDATE - 3/23/20 (2:30pm EDT): For the second time in two days, Senate Democrats voted to block the continuation of debate while negotiations progress on the “phase 3” coronavirus economic relief bill through a legislative filibuster. The vote failed 49-46, and required 60 votes to succeed. 

Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL) was the only Democrat to join Republicans in voting in favor of the motion after voting against it yesterday. Five GOP senators were unable to vote because they’re quarantined due to the coronavirus: Sens. Cory Gardner (CO), Rick Scott (FL), Mike Lee (UT), Mitt Romney (UT), and Rand Paul (KY) ― who tested posted for the virus. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) was in attendance and voted against the motion after missing Sunday’s vote for a virtual town hall he held in Vermont as part of his presidential campaign.

Much like the Sunday afternoon vote, the Monday afternoon vote wasn’t on passage of the underlying bill. Rather, it was on a cloture motion on the motion to proceed, which would’ve allowed for up to 30 hours of debate before a vote on the motion to proceed. The Senate would’ve then had to vote on another cloture motion (and potentially go through a further 30 hours of debate) before a vote on passage of the underlying bill. The Senate can bypass all of those procedural votes and debate at any time if there is unanimous consent to move forward.

If Congress is able to reach a bipartisan agreement, the “phase 3” coronavirus economic relief package is expected to include several high-level elements: 

  • Direct cash payments to Americans; 
  • Forgivable loans to small businesses to cover payroll, employee leave, rent, and other expenses; 
  • Relief for distressed companies in hard hit sectors of the U.S. economy such as air travel & hospitality; 
  • Expanded unemployment insurance with waivers of the ordinary requirements that applicants look for work or go through a waiting period to get benefits; and
  • Funding for hospitals & healthcare providers.

Senate Republicans introduced the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (S. 3548) on Thursday as a framework for the ensuing negotiations. The bill has evolved in several areas as a result of the bipartisan negotiations in the last several days:

  • The phase-in provision, which limited recovery checks to $600 for people with small tax burdens, has been removed so those people could receive up to $1,200 per person. (The phase out provisions, which begin gradually at $75,000 for individual taxpayers & phase out entirely at $99,000 remain in the bill.)
  • Forgivable loans for small businesses to cover payroll, leave, rent, other related expenses increased from $300 billion to $350 billion. The loans would only have to be repaid if funds are spent on other activities, and essentially convert to grants if spent on the previously described categories.
  • Increased funding for hospitals up to a total of $100 billion, including $70 billion to be distributed by the Dept. of Health & Human Services (HHS).

As the Senate’s negotiations continue, Democrats are requesting more restrictions on the relief funding for large corporations along with more transparency over allocations from the fund, $10,000 student loan debt relief, and protections against “eviction, foreclosure or forbearance.” 

Those provisions are being included in a bill being drafted by House Democrats, which reportedly also includes the following provisions in its more than 1,000 pages:

  • $150 billion in loans for corporations.
  • A requirement that the airline industry offset its carbon emissions.
  • Reports related to pay equity and the diversity of corporate boards.
  • An elimination of the U.S. Postal Service’s debt.
  • Funding for audits of elections, same-day voter registration, and early voting.
  • Minimum funding standards for community newspaper plans.
  • Expanding collective bargaining powers for federal workers.

The House's Democratic leaders previously said they would wait to reconvene the chamber until they receive the "phase 3" bill from the Senate after giving members 24 hours notice. So far, Democratic leaders haven't indicated how soon they would bring the chamber back to vote on their own bill or a Senate-passed bill.

UPDATE - 3/23/20 (12:30pm EDT): The Senate will soon re-vote on a cloture motion to continue debate on the “phase 3” coronavirus economic relief bill as bipartisan negotiations about that bill continue off the floor.

Late Sunday night, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) objected to a request by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) that the Senate convene at 9am and hold a re-vote on the failed cloture motion at 9:45am EDT.

UPDATE - 3/22/20 (7:20pm EDT): Senate Democrats have used a "legislative filibuster" to defeat Sunday's procedural motion that would've allowed negotiations to continue while the 30 hour post-cloture debate clock elapsed. Read more here.

UPDATE - 3/22/20 (3:50pm EDT): The Senate’s planned procedural vote on the “phase 3” coronavirus relief legislation has been delayed by three hours and will now occur at 6pm Eastern to allow bipartisan negotiations to continue.

While the final version of the “phase 3” bill is still in flux, here’s an outline of what it will include based off of the bill introduced as a framework for negotiations by Republicans on Thursday and reported updates in the evolving legislative languages:

  • Direct cash payments to Americans totaling $1,200 plus an additional $500 per child. It would gradually start phasing out for single taxpayers who had an adjusted gross income of $75,000 on their 2018 tax return, dropping by $5 for each $100 their income exceeds that threshold and phasing out entirely at $99,000 (amounts doubled for married taxpayers filing jointly). The original bill’s phase-in provision, which required at least $2,500 in qualifying income, has been removed.
  • $350 billion in loans to small businesses that would be forgivable for amounts spent on payroll, paid leave for employees, and rent or other debt payments.
  • $500 billion in assistance from the Treasury for large businesses in severely distressed sectors of the U.S. economy ― including passenger air carriers, cargo air carriers, and the hospitality industry. This aid would come in the form of loans with interest rates based on Treasury securities of the same maturity, although the Treasury could purchase stock options or warrants or other equity instruments contingent on the company’s financial success. Companies receiving aid would be prohibited from increasing executives’ compensation or offering “golden parachutes” for two years.
  • $75 billion in funding for hospitals and other healthcare providers.
  • All diagnostic testing for coronavirus (COVID-19) would be free of charge to the patient.

As the Senate’s negotiations continue, Democrats are requesting more restrictions on the relief funding for large corporations along with more transparency over allocations from the fund, student loan debt relief, and protections against “eviction, foreclosure or forbearance.”

When it occurs, the procedural vote will be on a cloture motion on a motion to proceed to the underlying “shell bill”, a parliamentary technique to avoid a filibuster. While a second cloture motion could be required for the bill itself, it’s likely that once a compromise on the final bill is reached there will be a unanimous consent agreement to bypass further procedural votes and move directly to votes on any amendments and then final passage. A passage vote on the "phase 3" coronavirus relief bill in the Senate could occur as early as Monday, and it would then go to the House which could approve it and send the bill to the president’s desk for enactment. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) ― whose chamber has been on recess for more than a week and has so far left the bipartisan negotiations to Senate Democrats & Republicans ― warned on Sunday that “we’ll be introducing our own bill and hopefully it’ll be compatible with what they discussed in the Senate.” The as-yet undrafted House bill would likely include provisions to accommodate Democratic lawmakers like Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC), who reportedly said on a caucus-wide conference call Thursday that the “phase 3” coronavirus relief bill “is a tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision.” 

The House's Democratic leaders previously said they would wait to reconvene the chamber until they receive the "phase 3" bill from the Senate after giving members 24 hours notice. So far, Democratic leaders haven't indicated how soon they would bring the chamber back to vote on their own bill or when that legislation would be drafted.

UPDATE - 3/21/20 (6:10pm EDT): Senators are continuing bipartisan negotiations surrounding the "phase 3" coronavirus relief package into Saturday night, although Republicans, Democrats, and the Trump administration indicated they're making progress. The final version of the legislation will likely be available at least in part on Sunday, when a procedural vote will occur at 3pm EDT, although it may continue to evolve prior to an expected passage vote Monday.

Countable's original article appears below.

What’s the story?

  • The “phase 3” bill to provide economic relief from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic to individuals, families, small businesses, and hard-hit sectors of the U.S. economy is currently the subject of bipartisan negotiations in Congress. 
  • The Senate, which will vote first on the package, hopes to reach an agreement by midnight Friday in advance of a procedural vote that would occur Saturday (if senators can reach a unanimous consent agreement) or early Sunday, potentially as early as 1 a.m. Eastern.
  • That would set up a potential passage vote Monday morning, although it could occur sooner if unanimous consent (UC) is granted, or later in the week if a bipartisan deal can’t be reached in this timeframe or UC isn’t agreed to speed up debate on the bill.
  • On Thursday, Senate Republicans introduced the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (S. 3548), which will serve as the baseline for negotiating a bipartisan framework. 
  • Once a bipartisan agreement is reached, the final text of the package will replace the text of a “shell bill” (H.R. 748), that passed the House and later had its provisions rendered moot by the enactment of a recent spending package. Ordinarily, spending bills like this are required to originate in the House, but that requirement is satisfied by the Senate’s use of the shell bill, which also allows the House to remain adjourned until the package is passed by the Senate for the sake of social distancing.

What will the “phase 3” bill look like?

What were "phase 1" & "phase 2"?


— Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: iStock.com / Gwengoat)