Some provisions provide direct aid. Others, not so much.
Congress on Wednesday passed a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 aid bill, complete with relief checks, school funding, state bailouts, and emergency business loans, among other provisions. While some aspects of the American Rescue Plan are related to the coronavirus, much of the bill is not. There’s a healthy debate to be had about what the government owes the American people: With mandated closures upending livelihoods, it’s fair to argue that, in some sense, the state owes the public some redress. Emergency loans for businesses—restaurants, bars, airlines music venues, and others—will go to those who demonstrate some sort of economic hit. Single adults making less than $75,000 a year and couples who file jointly and make less than $150,000 will qualify for $1,400, though there are likely few individuals or families below those income cutoffs who genuinely need $1,400. No such means test will be applied to money headed for state government coffers, yet it perhaps should be. Many states aren’t doing poorly at all, with California, for instance, reporting a $15 billion surplus. American taxpayers are about to send them several billion dollars more.
