The proposed $600 coronavirus stimulus payment was “just right” to get a relief bill passed, according to Senator Todd Young, but President Trump says that figure is “ridiculously low.”
During state officials’ COVID-19 press conference Tuesday, Senator Young didn’t directly say how much he thought the individual payments should be, but said compromise was necessary to get help to those who need it. “Hoosiers sent me to Washington in order to get an outcome,” Young said. “An outcome oftentimes involves principled compromise. Hoosiers couldn’t wait any longer.”
The bill would also extend pandemic-related unemployment benefits until March, give assistance to renters and farmers, and extend the deadline for state and local governments to spend their Coronavirus Relief Fund money. Young said he would like to have seen liability protections for health care providers, school corporations, and other employers, but they had to be set aside for the sake of compromise.
Governor Eric Holcomb expressed his appreciation for the bill passed by Congress Monday. “More than help is on the way,” Holcomb said. “It’s on its way right now.”
But that became a lot less certain a few hours later, when President Trump called on lawmakers to redo the bill that took months to negotiate. He felt it gave too much money to environmental initiatives, cultural organizations, and foreign countries, and not enough to individuals and small businesses. He wants the individual stimulus payments to be increased to $2,000.
