This evening, December 18, the U.S. House and Senate passed a last-minute continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government until Sunday December 20. The action came just hours before the federal government authority was due to expire. The president signed the bill into law before midnight. This averted a temporary shutdown of the federal government.  

This two day extension comes as lawmakers have struggled to finalize a $900 billion coronavirus relief package after months of deadlock. Congress intends to include the coronavirus relief in a broader omnibus appropriations bill to fund the government until the end of the current 2021 fiscal year.

PIA is advocating on a variety of items to include in this next coronavirus relief package, including a second draw for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, rejecting the imposition of a surprise tax on existing PPP loan recipients, and including provisions that would simplify the PPP loan forgiveness process for a larger pool of small business owners. We will continue to engage with congressional offices throughout the weekend to advocate for the relief package to pass with PIA’s priorities included.