U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-9) is backing President Joe Biden’s (D) $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which would bring approximately $130.4 million in overall aid to Hudson County.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The congressional vote on the relief package was a close one early Saturday morning, getting approved 219-212. No Republicans supported the bill and two Democrats, Kurt Schrader and Jared Golden, of Oregon and Maine, respectively, voted against it.
“ … This passage represents the first major step in President Biden’s plan to move us past the last four years and into the future. We cannot underscore the impact of direct stimulus checks, aid to struggling state governments, expansion of vaccination services, help for reopening schools, and expanded unemployment insurance,” Pascrell said in a statement.
“Today we protect pensions, we stand up for small businesses, we provide a wage increase for tens of millions. Through this legislation, we begin America’s rebirth from the embers of this pandemic and show, conclusively, the power of government to do good in peoples’ lives. Republican opposition for aid to Americans in need is no surprise. And it does not hinder us. This is one of the most significant pieces of legislation Congress will pass this generation.”
The plan includes $1,400 in relief checks for Americans making under $75,000 a year, a $400 per week supplemental unemployment bonus, money for vaccine distribution, and funding to aid schools, along with state and local governments.
Biden’s pandemic relief plan, which also seeks to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025, could come with a significant impact in New Jersey.
The fund will send approximate $10 billion to the Garden State, which includes approximately $259.7 million to Bergen County, $130.4 million to Hudson County, and $97.4 million to Passaic County, Pascrell’s office revealed.
The only Hudson County municipalities in the 9th Congressional District are Kearny and Secaucus, who would gain $4,033,218 and $2,150,598, respectively, in federal aid.
Additionally, Biden has already called on the Senate to pass the bill as soon as possible.
“If we act now, decisively, quickly and boldly, we can finally get ahead of this virus. We can finally get our economy moving again,” the president said, per CBS News.
“And the people of this country have suffered far too much for too long. We need to relieve that suffering. The American Rescue Plan does just that.”
