The travel industry breathed a big, giant sigh of relief this morning after President Donald Trump signed the stimulus relief bill following a week of threats to not do so.
The President wanted the $2.3 trillion coronavirus relief and government funding bill to include $2,000 in stimulus checks for eligible American citizens, instead of the $600 per person currently in the bill. Trump backed down holding up the bill, and a separate Congressional vote was scheduled for today on the amount of the direct personal checks.
Trump’s signing of the $900 billion COVID-19 relief package, the second one this year he has put his signature on, averted a government shutdown that was set to begin Tuesday, according to CNN.
It also gave travel leaders the go-ahead to being planning the first quarter of 2021. Airlines, for instance, will receive $15 billion under the condition they bring back all employees who were furloughed – 32,000 of them just between American and United airlines alone – and not make further layoffs until March 31, 2021. It is a similar stipulation carriers complied with earlier this year when they agreed to the CARES Act provisions of no furloughs until Sept. 30, 2020.
In addition to airline aid, the new stimulus package includes $1 billion for airline contractors, $2 billion for airports and concessionaires, $14 billion for transit, $10 billion for state highways, $1 billion for Amtrak and $2 billion for private bus, school bus and ferry companies.
CNN noted that Trump signaled in a statement Sunday night that he signed the coronavirus relief bill only after securing a commitment for the Senate to consider legislation to increase stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, however, did not reference that commitment in his own statement Sunday night praising the President for signing the relief bill.