On Monday evening, a bipartisan group of Senate and House lawmakers released legislative text of a two-part $908 billion coronavirus response measure. The first part, a $748 billion relief plan, includes $300 billion for supporting small businesses, provides $300 per week in federal unemployment benefits for 16 weeks additional weeks, and extends the eviction moratorium through January 31. It also includes billions for vaccine development, testing and tracing efforts, as well as supporting healthcare providers, among other provisions.
Most importantly for CTE, the proposal provides $82 billion for education funding. This includes $54 billion for K-12, $20 billion higher education, and a $7.5 billion fund for governors to use. It also includes $3 billion for an Emergency Educational Connectivity Fund, which provides E-Rate support to educational and distance learning providers to provide hotspots, devices, and other connected devices, and advance digital equity/inclusion. Additionally, it provides $200 million for the Institute for Museum and Library Services for internet-connected devices in low-income and rural areas, and another $6.2 billion for broadband that can also be used for remote learning. It also extends forbearance on federal student loan repayments until April 1, 2021.
Ultimately, the fate of these proposals are up to congressional leaders, who are now engaging in final negotiation over this bill and other potential proposals. ACTE will continue to monitor the development of this proposal as part of our coverage on the CTE Policy Watch Blog, so please continue to check back for updates.
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