WASHINGTON (NewsNation Now) — The U.S. House of Representatives is poised to approve the final version of a sweeping $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill Wednesday, an early landmark victory for President Joe Biden
The House will consider the legislation starting at 9:00 a.m. EST on Wednesday with two hours of debate expected before a final vote. NewsNation will live stream the vote in the player above.
Once the House approves the American Rescue Act, it can make its way to Biden's desk. The final passage of the bill means the federal government should be able to launch the delivery of $1,400 stimulus checks almost right away, according to tax experts.
The bill, one of the largest stimulus measures in American history, would provide extended emergency unemployment benefits, direct payments of up to $1,400 for most Americans and vast piles of spending for COVID-19 vaccines and testing, states and cities, schools and ailing industries, along with tax breaks to help lower-earning people, families with children and consumers buying health insurance.
The bill was sent over to the House on Tuesday morning from the Senate. Later Tuesday, the House voted to advance the bill, clearing the way for the measure to be considered Wednesday when a final vote on the stimulus relief is expected.
The Senate passed its version of the bill after a 25-hour marathon session Saturday. The Senate version eliminated or pared back some provisions included in the House bill, which had increased the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour and extended expanded jobless assistance through Aug. 29.
The House last month passed an earlier version of the bill but has to meet again to approve changes made in the Senate over the weekend.
Congressional leaders do not expect a replay of the prolonged fights around earlier votes, which stretched past midnight in the House Rules Committee and went all night in the Senate in a session that ended on Saturday afternoon. However, it is possible that Republicans opposed to the bill could delay proceedings. They could ask for a motion to send the bill back to a committee or a member could move to adjourn the House.
Republicans, who broadly supported coronavirus relief early in the pandemic, have criticized the price tag of the Biden relief package.
The first version of the bill passed in the House without a single Republican vote.
Like in the Senate, Democrats hold a very narrow majority in the chamber, meaning they cannot withstand many votes against the bill.
Americans have already pocketed $1.5 trillion in savings from the previous rounds of stimulus, and this one is coming as a rising portion of the population is finding it safer to resume activities such as dining out and traveling that have been off-limits for much of the past year, costing millions of service workers their jobs.
The passage of the American Rescue Act would mark the first big legislative victory for Biden, just 50 days into his first term as president.
Biden has said he will sign the legislation as soon as it is approved. But now he may not sign the bill until later in the week, while it goes through final checks, according to people familiar with the White House's plans.
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