COVID-19 Federal Legislation Overview

Andrea Woodard, senior vice president of government relations and public policy at the Greater Des Moines Partnership, recently led a virtual seminar with Allison Dembeck, executive director of the Congressional and Public Affairs Division at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, an entity focused on education, labor and workforce development issues. Allison gives an overview on federal legislation.

COVID-19 Response Bills

Allison starts off by highlighting COVID-19 response bills, including Phase I, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act (H.R. 6074), which is a $8.3 billion relief package passed on Wednesday, March 4. That package focuses on money for vaccine research, telehealth and small businesses. On Wednesday, March 18, Phase II was signed into law. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (H.R. 6201) deals with how individuals are being impacted, including food assistance programs, paid sick leave, paid family medical leave and expansions to Unemployment Insurance (UI). Phase III, passed on Friday, March 27, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act (S. 3548), was signed into law. The $2 trillion bill made changes to unemployment benefits.

A complete list of policy information is available here.

To see the entire webinar, click here.

You can count on The Partnership to continue to share accurate and fact-based updates as well. See more on COVID-19 here, including employment resources for those impacted due to COVID-19.

Find these tips useful? Find more business tools and information by visiting the Business Resources page.