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WASHINGTON — House Democrats passed their party’s $1.9 trillion COVID aid package Wednesday, clearing it through Congress and sending it to President Joe Biden’s desk.
The White House announced that Biden will sign the bill into law on Friday.
The American Rescue Plan sends out checks of $1,400 to many Americans, provides more support to unemployed workers, and distributes hundreds of billions of dollars for vaccinations and contact tracing and aid to sectors ranging from schools to hospitals to the transportation industry to restaurants and bars. It also provides a historic guaranteed income for parents, about doubling the size of existing government aid to help raise children.
The bill passed on an almost party-line vote of 220–211. All Republicans and Maine Democratic Rep. Jared Golden voted against the bill. All other Democrats voted for it. Over the weekend, Democrats were able to use their new majority in the Senate to pass the bill 50–49, also on a party-line vote.
