Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is presenting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) with his latest offer on the next COVID-19 relief bill.
Mnuchin revealed in a statement he offered Pelosi a $916 billion coronavirus relief deal.
The deal includes funding for state and local governments and liability protection for businesses, schools, and universities.
The proposal will be funded through $140 billion in unused funds from the Paycheck Protection Program and $429 billion in additional Treasury funds.
Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows reviewed the offer with the president, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).
“I look forward to achieving this bipartisan agreement so we can provide critical economic relief to American workers, families and businesses,” Mnuchin said.
Statement on my discussions with @SpeakerPelosi on COVID relief. pic.twitter.com/z3g2geg4sl
— Steven Mnuchin (@stevenmnuchin1) December 8, 2020
Mnuchin noted his proposal is higher than the $908 billion bipartisan offer.
McConnell suggested lawmakers should pass a relief package without liability protections for businesses or additional aid to state and local governments, as IJR previously reported.
“What I recommend is we set aside liability and set aside state and local, and pass those things that we can agree on, knowing full well we’ll be back at this after the first of the year,” McConnell told reporters. “Why don’t we set aside the two obviously most contentious issues?”
He added, “Leaving here (for the year) without a COVID relief package cannot happen.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) accused McConnell of “sabotaging” negotiations.
“Leader McConnell has refused to be part of the bipartisan negotiations and now he’s sabotaging good-faith bipartisan negotiations because his partisan ideological effort is not getting a good reception,” Schumer said.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) also penned a letter along with other senators calling for another round of $1,200 direct payments in the next relief package, as IJR previously reported.
