House Passes 4th COVID-19 Stimulus Bill

The House of Representatives recently passed H.R. 6800, the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act. (or HEROES Act) The $3 trillion proposal includes additional stimulus payments to taxpayers, hazard pay for essential employees, housing assistance, student loan forgiveness and funding to state and local governments. The bill now moves on to a skeptical Senate.

Items pertinent to the child welfare field include:

o $7 billion for Child Care and Development Block Grants;

o $1.5 billion for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP);

o $1.5 billion to support paying water bills for low-income families;

o $50 million for Family Violence Prevention and Services;

o $20 million for Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) State Grants; and

o $20 million for Community Based-Child Abuse Prevention Grants.

A full summary of the bill can be found here. State and local breakdowns can be found here.