WASHINGTON –U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) released the following statement after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced the Senate will vote on a $500 billion coronavirus relief bill, which contains funding for testing, additional federal unemployment benefits, and an extension of the Paycheck Protection Program:
“We already passed $3.8 trillion worth of COVID-19 relief, and I believe we do need to do some more. That’s why I was disappointed when Senate Democrats voted to block another half trillion dollar bill on September the 10th,” said Sen. Cornyn. “Senator McConnell is determined to put the bill on the floor again this week and see whether Democrats are serious or whether this is just politics.”
Background:
The Senate will vote on this additional coronavirus relief bill Wednesday following a standalone vote on additional Paycheck Protection Program funds on Tuesday. The legislation contains:
- More federally-expanded unemployment benefits for laid-off Americans;
- An entire second round of the Paycheck Protection Program, which has paid out more than $41 billion across more than 417,000 individual loans to Texas businesses since the program launched;
- $100B+ to make schools safer for children;
- Additional funding for testing and contact tracing;
- And more funding for Operation Warp Speed to produce a vaccine and distribute it across the country.