Here's How the American Rescue Plan Delivers for Pennsylvania

Here’s How the American Rescue Plan Delivers for Pennsylvania

While the deadly COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis that it spurred continue to test families across the country, help already is on the way. On March 11, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan, the most sweeping and progressive economic package that Congress has passed in recent decades. As CAP Action puts it, it is, quite simply, “the most consequential legislation for low and middle income Americans in modern history.”

Within days, the relief promised in the bill already was making its way into the bank accounts and saving the jobs of working families across the country. In fact, more than 27,000 jobs – 14,000 at United Airlines and 13,000 at American Airlines – were immediately saved. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said in a social media post after the passage of the bill, “Thousands of frontline workers will now receive paychecks and healthcare through September.” Kirby went on to thank “the employees and union partners who made their voices heard” on the issue. American Airlines, meanwhile, told 13,000 employees who got layoff notices last month, “Those are happily canceled – you can tear them up!”

What else is in the American Rescue Plan, and how will it benefit Pennsylvania’s working families? Here’s just a sampling, courtesy of CAP Action:

Vaccines: As of March 14, 4.3 million doses had been administered in Pennsylvania, 500,000 of which were administered since the bill was signed.

Direct Payments: In Pennsylvania, more than 8.1 million adults (86 percent of all Pennsylvania adults) and 2.8 million children (84 percent of all Pennsylvania children) will receive direct payments worth up to $1,400. This relief will be a lifeline for the state’s 2.75 million people who reported difficulty in covering normal household expenses.

Expanded Child Tax Credit: More than 2.3 million Pennsylvania children under age 18 – 90 percent of the state’s children – will benefit from an expansion of the child tax credit, which previously was $2,000. For families making less than $150,000 a year, the credit provides $3,600 for each child under age 6 and $3,000 for each one under age 18. The tax credit would be fully refundable so that even very low-income parents would receive benefits, according to the Keystone Research Center and PA Budget and Policy Center. Households also can receive payments monthly rather than wait for an annual lump sum, making it easier to cover monthly expenses. Payments will begin in July. This key provision of the bill will help lift 140,000 Pennsylvania children out of poverty, with no red tape.

Earned Income Tax Credit: An additional $1,000 will be available to 697,000 Pennsylvania workers with no children, including many essential workers.

Unemployment Insurance: Over 340,000 fewer Pennsylvanians are employed now than when the pandemic began in February 2020. The passage of the American Rescue Plan will provide many of these workers with extended unemployment benefits worth $300 per week through the summer.

Rental Relief: $671 million is now available to help the 489,000 Pennsylvania renters (20 percent of all the state’s renters) who are behind on payments.

Safely Reopening Schools: $5.1 billion is dedicated to getting students and teachers back into the classroom in Pennsylvania’s K-12 schools.

Preventing Layoffs & Service Cuts: Cities, counties, and the state itself will receive $12.1 billion to help prevent service cuts and layoffs.

More Affordable Health Care: A Pennsylvania family of four with an income of four times the federal poverty level that purchases their health insurance on an ACA marketplace would see their monthly premiums drop by $605.

The passage of the American Rescue Plan is a triumph for working families. It will help our economy not only recover from the pandemic but also correct the economic inequities for working families that the pandemic has laid bare.

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