Economy

Pres. Trump Signs ‘Phase 3.5’ Coronavirus Relief Package Into Law

Published

2 years ago

April 24, 2020

President Donald Trump signed the $484 billion “Phase 3.5” emergency interim coronavirus relief package into law inside of the Oval Office on Friday, after Congress passed legislation earlier in the week to replenish the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for small businesses and add billions of dollars in aid to hospitals across the country during the COVID-19 crisis.

President Trump described the bill as “great for small businesses” and “great for the workers,” adding that it will “extend relief to thousands of African-American and Hispanic American business owners.”

“Phase 3.5” will provide an additional $310 billion in funds to the PPP, which was established in order to help businesses with less than 500 employees receive loans that can cover at least eight weeks of payroll, benefits, and other expenses. Out of that $310 billion, $30 billion is reserved for community-based lenders, small banks and credit unions, while another $30 billion will go to mid-sized banks and credit unions.

The law will also provide an additional $50 billion for the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) emergency disaster lending program and $10 billion in SBA disaster grants.

The PPP was created as part of the “Phase 3” stimulus package, known as the CARES Act, which was signed into law in March. PPP converts small business loans to grants, which will be fully forgiven if at least 75-percent of the loan is used toward keeping employees on the payroll. The PPP ran out of funding earlier this month, which prompted Congress to pass the “Phase 3.5” relief package to replenish it, as well as fund other programs.

As of Friday, at least 869,172 people have been infected with the coronavirus in the U.S. and nearly 50,000 people have died nationwide.

For more information, visit Fox News.

Related Topics:CARES Act coronavirus Donald J. Trump

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Economy

No help at our border, but Biden announces $5 billion going to bike paths, wider sidewalks

Published

1 week ago

May 17, 2022

Sara Carter Staff

In the world of Democrat delusion, they think $5 billion is necessary, at this point in time, to make bike paths and widen side walks. You cannot make this up. They have approved $40 billion in aide to Ukraine in a heartbeat under President Biden, while having rejected former President Trump’s request for a mere $5 billion to secure our border.

The news also comes as fentanyl and the drug overdoses are the number one cause of death in the U.S. There’s also an increase in human smuggling and extortion to pay to cross the border. But no; let’s make some bike paths and widen sidewalks. That is an immediate emergency.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced Monday that money will be used over five years under his department’s new “Safe Streets & Roads for All” program. The $5 billion ini federals funds will be used “to slow down cars chia more speed cameras, carve out bike paths and wider sidewalks and urging commuters to public transit” reports Daily Mail.

“The aim will be to provide a direct infusion of federal cash to communities that pledge to promote safety for the multiple users of a roadway, particularly pedestrians and bicyclists.” The announcement also coincides with the six-month anniversary of President Biden’s infrastructure legislation, and the beginning of the 2022 “infrastructure week.”

The desire to fix roads is a noble one, as “road traffic injuries also are the leading cause of death among young people aged 5-29. Young adults aged 15-4 account for more than half of all road deaths” reports Daily Mail, which adds:

Still, much of the federal roadmap relies on cooperation from cities and states, and it could take months if not years to fully implement with discernible results – too late to soothe 2022 midterm voters unsettled by this and other pandemic-related ills, such as rising crime.

The latest U.S. guidance Monday invites cities and localities to sketch out safety plans in their applications for the federal grants, which are to be awarded late this year.

It cites examples of good projects as those that promise to transform a high-crash roadway, such as by adding rumble strips to slow cars or installing speed cameras, which the department says could provide more equitable enforcement than police traffic stops; flashing beacons for pedestrian crosswalks; new ‘safe routes’ via sidewalks or other protected pathways to school or public transit in underserved communities; and other ‘quick build’ roadway changes designed with community input.