FISCAL BLOG

Generally, states with larger populations have been receiving more federal dollars from COVID-19 relief programs as such states typically have more unemployed persons, small businesses, and healthcare providers to which that relief has been targeted.

One key component of the $1.9 trillion package is an estimated $362 billion in federal aid to state, local, territorial, and tribal governments to cover expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency.

Cracking down on the tax gap would not only introduce more fairness into the system, but it could be a big help for our nation’s fiscal imbalance — to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars every year.

America’s small businesses have been severely impacted by the economic downturn caused by the pandemic — and lawmakers have focused a significant part of federal relief on helping this critical part of our economy.

The number of individuals experiencing long-term unemployment (lasting 27 weeks or longer) has quadrupled during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Since April 2020, the federal government has spent an average of $9 billion per month on SNAP — 71 percent higher than the amount spent in March 2020 (before the pandemic was widely recognized).

The decline in purchasing power has important implications for the federal budget and our nation’s infrastructure, and has led some to call for a new effort to address the gas tax.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused a severe public health crisis as well as substantial economic disruption for every American. So far, lawmakers have enacted five separate pieces of legislation.

Three sets of stimulus checks have been issued to eligible recipients as part of the pandemic relief. Each set of payments have been slightly different.

The report highlights the structural misalignment in the country’s budget and the resulting unsustainable fiscal trajectory.