Happy Wednesday and welcome back to On The Money. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.
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THE BIG DEAL– Mnuchin, Schumer in talks to strike short-term relief deal: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) are in talks to avoid a nasty Senate floor fight between Democrats and Republicans that could leave a critical small-business loan program short on funds.
- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) plans to ask for unanimous consent Thursday morning to approve of an additional $250 billion for the popular Paycheck Protection Program under which small businesses can get federally backed loans that will be forgiven if they keep workers on payroll during the coronavirus downturn.
- But Senate Democrats are threatening to object unless the Trump administration and GOP lawmakers agree to several concessions, including assurances to help get money to businesses owned by women, minorities and veterans in underserved communities.
- They also say the package should include another $100 billion for hospitals and health care centers, $150 billion for state and local governments and a 15 percent funding increase for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that provides food stamps.
The Hill’s Alexander Bolton breaks down the impasse and negotiations here.
The Trump administration has approved roughly $100 billion of the $350 billion allocated for emergency loans to small businesses devastated by the coronavirus outbreak, Mnuchin told lawmakers on Wednesday.
But the figure has done little to ease the rising fears of smaller businesses still struggling to access the funds and growing cynical that the program can reach beyond the well connected.
The Hill’s Mike Lillis breaks down the struggles facing small business owners who’ve been met with delays, confusion and uncertainty that the funds will ever arrive.
LEADING THE DAY
Massie threatens to block next relief bill, calls for remote voting: Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), the libertarian lawmaker who single-handedly forced hundreds of his colleagues to travel to the Capitol last month to pass coronavirus relief legislation despite health concerns over the virus, warned Wednesday that he may again block future bills from passing without a roll call vote.
Massie warned that he will again object to passing an additional coronavirus relief measure through a process that only requires a handful of people present in the chamber and called for establishing a virtual voting system so that all lawmakers can make their individual positions clear.
The Hill’s Cristina Marcos explains why.
EXCLUSIVE: Treasury IG sends report to House Dems on handling of Trump tax returns: The Treasury Department’s inspector general’s office on Wednesday sent a report about the department’s handling of House Democrats’ request for President Trump’s tax returns to key lawmakers.
Deputy Inspector General Richard Delmar, who is currently the acting IG for Treasury, said in an email to The Hill that his office’s “inquiry report” was sent to House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-Mass.), who requested the report, as well as the committee’s top Republican, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas).
The contents of the report were not immediately known. The Hill has reached out to Neal’s and Brady’s offices. Here’s more from The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda.
GOOD TO KNOW
- Five things to watch as Wuhan emerges from coronavirus lockdown
- The Federal Reserve on Wednesday gave Wells Fargo the regulatory green light to issue emergency coronavirus loans to small businesses without violating the unprecedented restrictions imposed on it by the central bank in 2018.
- McDonald’s on Wednesday reported a same-store sales decrease of 22 percent in March amid the coronavirus pandemic.
- Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) on Wednesday said that all credit card interest, fees and penalties should be suspended during the coronavirus crisis, as many people have lost their jobs and are struggling to cover their expenses.
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Wednesday that Congress should eliminate the cap on total aid for small businesses impacted by the coronavirus.