House Democrats attempted to approve unspecified technical corrections to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, or H.R. 6201, earlier in the day, but Texas Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert's objections kept the measure from expedited consideration by the House. Gohmert initially complained that the corrections were too broad, but said he relented because the changes reflected improvements in the bill.
A summary of the corrected legislation wasn't available, but a House Democratic aide said it included technical corrections to half a dozen provisions.
The bipartisan coronavirus bill, which passed the House early Saturday morning after days of negotiations between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., would provide workers with paid emergency sick leave, paid family and medical leave and establish a new employer tax credit to offset wages for displaced workers impacted by the outbreak.
Lawmakers and the Trump administration hope the legislation pending in Congress will help turn back a possible economic recession in the U.S., which has already seen schools and universities close, businesses shutter and tourism and air transportation slow due to the new coronavirus.
In televised interviews over the weekend, Mnuchin said the economy will likely falter, but predicted activity will pick back up once the outbreak is contained.
"The real issue is what economic tools are we going to use to make sure we get through this. We're clearly going to have a slowdown," Mnuchin said on ABC's "This Week."
Following House passage of H.R. 6201 on Saturday, Mnuchin said Treasury expects to help small businesses that can't afford the employee costs of providing paid sick leave by using its regulatory authority to advance funds to businesses.
"Employers will be able to use cash deposited with the [Internal Revenue Service] to pay sick-leave wages," he said in a statement Saturday. "Additionally, for businesses that would not have sufficient taxes to draw from, Treasury will use its regulatory authority to make advances to small businesses to cover such costs."
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., pushed back against the House bill, and was especially dismissive of the tax credit proposal.
"The House bill doesn't go far enough, fast enough," he said. "The centerpiece of the House bill in providing aid to affected workers is a new kind of tax credit for paid sick leave. Unfortunately, that's wrong-headed."
At least one Senate lawmaker called on Mnuchin to take more action to help taxpayers by giving them an automatic 90-day extension from the April 15 deadline to file their taxes to July 15.
In a letter to Mnuchin, Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., wrote that Treasury and the IRS should adopt measures designed to expedite the review of returns filed by Americans expecting refunds. Sasse noted that during President Donald Trump's Oval Office address Wednesday, the president said he would direct Treasury to defer tax payments without interest or penalties for individuals and businesses impacted by the outbreak.
"With the April 15 deadline fast approaching, it is important that the Treasury quickly provide taxpayers with clarity and certainty consistent with the president's order — and an automatic 90-day extension would do just that," Sasse wrote.
Treasury has not released a reply to Sasse's request. A spokesperson for Sasse didn't immediately return a request for comment.
While the House bill is still pending, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Senate work is already underway on a third package of economic stimulation legislation to help families and businesses with cash flow needs survive the crisis.
Grassley didn't give specific details of the legislation, which he said will include targeted measures to "ensure workers and businesses nationwide can weather this temporary but unprecedented disruption."
Senate Democrats are also working on legislation to provide $750 billion of economic stimulus to address the impact of the coronavirus, according to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who said he plans to unveil proposals as early as Tuesday.
The Democratic legislation would help hospitals, the unemployed, college students with federal loans and those facing evictions and foreclosures, he said. It will also address the need for emergency child care, remote learning and public transportation, among other issues, Schumer said.
"We will need big, bold, urgent federal action to deal with this crisis," Schumer said.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce called on Congress to address the drop in economic demand in the coming legislation or businesses will be forced to cut worker pay or close their doors.
Tom Donohue, chief executive of the chamber, called on Congress to cancel payment of more than $300 billion in federal payroll taxes due from employers for the months of March through May.
"Collectively, these taxes add just over 15% to the cost of employing the average employee," Donohue said in a statement. "Temporary relief from these taxes would give businesses more breathing room and operating capital to keep paying their employees and avoid layoffs."
Nonprofit organizations also want Congress to pass payroll tax relief using the employer tax credit included in the House-passed legislation.
David Thompson, vice president of public policy for the National Council of Nonprofits, which advocates for charitable nonprofits, said the House bill would allow employers to take the credit against their payroll taxes, which helps the nonprofit sector.
"The refundable payroll tax credit is huge, because usually we are left out," he said, noting that tax credits usually apply to income taxes.
--Additional reporting by David van den Berg and Andrew Kragie. Editing by Neil Cohen.
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