[NYAPRS Enews] Negotiations on COVID 5 Package Underway: Senate, House & White House Stake out Positions

[Harvey Rosenthal]

NYAPRS Note: Here’s a general summary of what appear to the opening bargaining positions of the GOP Senate and White House and House Democrats as more serious negotiations for a COVID 5 package are underway.

  *   The Senate is expected to return to session by next week, just three weeks before its summer recess.
  *   Bipartisan support is essential for passing any legislation, since 60 votes would be needed to overcome a Democratic filibuster in a chamber where the GOP has 53 seats.
  *   Moreover, to get a bill to Trump's desk, they would have to get consensus with the Democratic-led House, which has pushed through its $3 trillion plan that the GOP calls unserious and deeply flawed.
  *   But pressure is building on GOP leadership to find a path forward, as some Republican lawmakers up for reelection show eagerness to pass another stimulus bill with voters struggling amid the pandemic.
  *   However contentious, look for some kind of agreement in the coming weeks.

Key for community behavioral health advocates is the magnitude of a likely agreement on some level of funding for the states and localities. The House had pledged about a combined $1 trillion here but look for a final agreement to fall short of that number. If states like NY fail to get sufficient funds, it’s possible that the current 20% ‘withhold’ on state and local aids cuts could be folded into a new budget proposal from the Governor that would have to be approved by the NYS Senate and Assembly.

What’s unclear also is the fate of a $38.5 billion package for behavioral health providers across the nation that has been advanced by the National Council and many allied groups.

NYAPRS and our colleague groups have long pushed Congress to approve ample state funds as well as pressing the Cuomo Administration to resist making or fully restoring cuts to the essential behavioral health sector: look for more media coverage and a continued push on both the Governor and Legislature in the coming days.

A COVID-5 deal will have to reconcile the following differences:

Proposal
Senate GOP/White House
House Democrats
White House

Total Cost
$1.3 trillion
$3 trillion
Unclear

State and local government
Mixed support for a lower amount
$1 trillion for state and local governments

Same as Senate

Unemployment insurance
Mixed support
Extending unemployment insurance provisions <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.cnn.com_2020_04_16_politics_states-2Dbump-2Dunemployment-2Dbenefits_index.html&d=DwMFaQ&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=RZKMmiODsL8lW1CvoyvccXL03-Qr4iqDejsjr8b_Vqs&m=Nr8PmG_wZcVrJ1_SPw-q0nu-4kyZj7YvIY4RkEv4a_0&s=s6_jzfqCUK8dFi1RLzfwEbsf4JVccgPFUncDCxuIvZI&e=> beyond July
Same as Senate
Another round of payments to individuals
Generally supportive
Strong support
Same as Senate
School aid
Lawsuit protections for doctors, nurses, first responders, schools and businesses covering the period from December 2019 to December 2024.

Against ‘removing all responsibility’; seek a regulation under the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration aimed at protecting workers at risk of exposure from the virus
Same as Senate
Payroll tax and capital gains tax holidays


Yes
Help for restaurants, hotels and airlines


Yes

Harvey Rosenthal
NYAPRS Chief Executive Officer
Office: 518-436-0008; C: 518-527-0564
harveyr at nyaprs.org<mailto:harveyr at nyaprs.org>
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