Happy Monday and welcome back to On The Money, where we’re enjoying a unique way of celebrating Passover. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.
See something I missed? Let me know at slane@digital-release.digital-release.thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1NxxW2N.
Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@digital-release.digital-release.thehill.com, njagoda@digital-release.digital-release.thehill.com and nelis@digital-release.digital-release.thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @NJagoda and @NivElis.
THE BIG DEAL—CDC extends coronavirus eviction ban through June 30: The Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC) on Monday announced that it has extended a federal ban on coronavirus-related evictions through June 30, three days before it was set to expire.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a historic threat to the nation’s public health. Keeping people in their homes and out of crowded or congregate settings — like homeless shelters — by preventing evictions is a key step in helping to stop the spread of COVID-19,” said CDC Director Rochelle Walensky in a Monday statement.
- Walensky on Sunday signed an order to postpone the March 31 expiration of the CDC eviction ban, the agency announced Monday.
- The CDC in September prohibited evictions of renters below a certain income threshold if they failed to pay rent due to a pandemic-related job loss or expense.
- More than 10 million Americans are facing housing insecurity, 5.4 million expect to face eviction or foreclosure soon, and more than 78 million said they’re having trouble covering basic expenses, according to a Census Bureau survey conducted earlier this month.
The impact: The 90-day extension could give struggling households sorely needed time to find work and begin digging out from the financial hole created by the pandemic. Those protected by the ban are still responsible for paying rent and fees that accrued on it during the moratorium, and many will likely need federal assistance to cover those costs. But it will also add to the financial pressure facing landlords and boost the urgency for the Biden administration to distribute rental aid. I explain here.
The reactions:
- “Director Walensky’s extension of the CDC’s eviction moratorium…was absolutely essential.” — Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chairman of the Senate Banking and Housing Committee.
- “Instead of extending the CDC moratorium, the Biden administration should be focused on making the rental assistance program more workable.” — Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), ranking member of the Senate Banking and Housing Committee.
- “The moratorium does not do nearly enough to ensure that tenants are protected from evictions during a pandemic — the people deserve more.” — Jennifer Epps-Addison, co-executive director of Center for Popular Democracy
- “This is good news for renters, communities, and public health. Everyone wishes the pandemic was over and done with, but the virus isn’t quite done with us yet.” — Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
LEADING THE DAY
Biden to detail infrastructure proposal and how to pay for it on Wednesday: President Biden on Wednesday will unveil his infrastructure proposal as well as how to pay for it as the White House eyes its next big legislative push.
- The package Biden will lay out on Wednesday will focus on domestic manufacturing, research and development, caregiving and infrastructure.
- He will deliver the speech during a stop in Pittsburgh, Pa., the same city where he announced his presidential campaign in 2019.
- The White House confirmed Biden will detail how to pay for every dollar of the proposal, but stressed that the White House will work with members of Congress to find common ground on the package and how to fund it.
“The president has a plan to fix the infrastructure of our country. We’re currently 13th in the world. No one believes we should be there. And he has a plan to pay for it, which he will propose,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Monday.
“Once he proposes that, our focus is also on having that engagement and discussion with members of Congress,” she added. The Hill’s Brett Samuels has more here.
US won’t quickly lift Trump tariffs on China: The United States will maintain former President Trump’s tariffs on Chinese imports in the near term, said U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai.
“No negotiator walks away from leverage, right?” she told The Wall Street Journal, indicating that the import taxes would likely remain in place until certain trade issues with China were settled.
The background:
- Trump imposed tariffs on roughly $370 billion of Chinese imports during the course of his presidency in an attempt to pressure the government into concessions on trade.
- Some of the tariffs and proposed additional tariffs were scaled back in January 2020 when the two countries agreed to a “Phase One,” which dealt with a handful of trade issues but didn’t require China to make any substantial economic reforms on tough issues.
- The future of Trump’s tariffs is one of the pressing questions facing the Biden administration on trade.
The Hill’s Niv Elis updates us here.
GOOD TO KNOW
- Several Senate Democrats are pushing to boost federal revenue by taxing certain capital gains that are passed down after death.
- The top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee on Monday asked the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco to explain several recent research bulletins and seminars on racial economic disparities and climate change.
- Major banks such as Credit Suisse and Nomura said Monday that a fire sale of assets at a U.S. hedge fund would affect their earnings this quarter.
- World leaders and businesses breathed a collective sigh of relief Monday when the enormous container ship blocking the Suez Canal was freed after wreaking havoc on global trade for almost a week.
- Momentum is building behind the paid family leave movement as more corporations and public officials embrace the policy amid the coronavirus pandemic.
- Major corporations are finding ways to sidestep their pledges from January to withhold campaign contributions for GOP lawmakers who objected to the 2020 presidential election results.
ODDS AND ENDS
- A group of Republican lawmakers led by Sen. Rick Scott (Fla.) sent a letter to White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Jeffrey Zients last week asking that guidance be issued for the cruise industry to resume operations.
- Nike on Monday sued the streetwear company MSCHF, which released rapper Lil Nas X’s controversial “Satan Shoes” out of modified Nike Air Max 97s.