Franklincountynow.com Staff Report
U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, joined Governor Baker’s news conference Monday at the Statehouse.
Neal said he expects officials will pass a $1.9 trillion pandemic aid package by mid-March and that his committee “will write $941 billion of that responsibility” this week between Wednesday and Friday.
Neal said the economy is still in rough shape because of the pandemic. He said 19 million Americans are receiving unemployment insurance and 10 million jobs lost during the pandemic have not returned.
He also said lawmakers will make good on promised $2,000 checks by passing $1,400 checks to supplement what was approved in December and that he supports a $3,600 benefit for children under 6 and $3,000 for older children.
“We will not get the economy back up and running until we defeat the virus,” Neal said.