The $1.9 trillion Biden stimulus law was enacted last week.
Some elements could strengthen the nation s social safety net in the wake of the pandemic.
Provisions include larger tax credits and enhanced unemployment insurance.
President Joe Biden signed a $1.9 trillion stimulus law last week, among the largest government rescue measures in American history.
Many of its provisions are directed at keeping individuals and families afloat as vaccinations become more widely available. Still, some aspects of the law may end up dramatically remaking the social safety net. This package sets a new and powerful precedent, especially for helping children and their families when they have limited or no income, Indivar Dutta-Gupta, co-executive director of the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality, said in a recent interview with Insider.
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But those provisions will expire later this year if Congress takes no further action.
Experts say the child poverty rate could double next year.
President Joe Biden secured his first major legislative victory on the 51st day of his new administration. He signed a $1.9 trillion economic aid bill into law Thursday, paving the way for a large infusion of federal cash onto middle-class and lower-income Americans.
The package includes various measures to help struggling households a year into the pandemic: A wave of $1,400 stimulus payments, beefed-up tax credits for children and adults, larger food-stamp assistance, and enhanced unemployment insurance. Democrats cast it as among the most historic pieces of legislation that Congress has taken up in many years.
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Unemployment benefits in the stimulus plan include a tax exemption on the first $10,200 of benefits.
Democrats want to remove the requirement of an amended tax return for people who ve already filed.
If this isn t possible, Democrats asked for robust outreach to make filing easy for taxpayers.
The unemployment benefits in the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan that President Joe Biden signed into law on Thursday included a tax exemption on the first $10,200 of the benefits received last year. But it could still be difficult for taxpayers to claim this exemption, and Senate Democrats are pushing the IRS to make it as easy as possible.