WASHINGTON: The US Senate on Tuesday was weighing a multi billion-dollar emergency spending bill passed by the House of Representatives offering economic relief from the coronavirus pandemic as the Trump administration pressed for $850 billion more.

The House of Repre­sentatives over the weekend passed a measure that would require sick leave for workers and expand unemployment compensation among other steps, including nearly $1bn in ­additional money to help feed children, homebound senior citizens and others.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said his chamber is “anxious” to approve the House measure, a move that could happen on Tuesday.

“The Senate will not adjourn until we have passed significant and bold new steps, above and beyond what the House passed,” McConnell said on the Senate floor.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, however, warned that cutting the payroll tax — apparently the largest chunk of the Trump administration’s new proposal — “may be premature and the wrong response” to fighting the impact of the coronavirus on the economy. Even some Senate Republicans were not enamoured of cutting the payroll tax.

Members of both political parties were talking about large amounts of additional money to help blunt the impact of the fast-spreading disease. The outbreak has killed more than 7,000 people worldwide, including at least 89 in the United States, caused massive disruptions to daily life across the country and hammered global financial markets.

The Trump administration wants $500bn in a payroll tax cut, a $50bn bailout for airlines struggling from plummeting demand, and $250bn for small business loans, a US government official said.

Published in Dawn, March 18th, 2020