With the Democratic Party controlling the House, Senate, and presidency for the first time since 2008, a wave of big changes in Washington could soon be upon us. President-elect Joe Biden has made pledges to reverse or remove some policies implemented by the Donald Trump administration, as well as pass aggressive COVID-19 relief and stimulus. Here are some of the major possible policy changes under a Democratic government.
The president-elect has already revealed an ambitious $1.9 trillion COVID-19 aid, relief, and stimulus bill. Known as the American Rescue Plan, this bill is considerably more ambitious than the $900 billion deal passed at the end of last year. Here’s a summary of what’s in this proposed relief bill.
- Extra stimulus payments. The bill calls for additional $1,400 stimulus checks to be sent out to all eligible Americans, which now includes adult dependents and households with mixed immigration status. Combined with the $600 stimulus checks offered in the last bill, the amount given will total $2,000.
- Enhanced unemployment aid (universal income). The current federal unemployment stimulus booster will be increased from $300 a week to $400 a week, on top of what is already being provided by state and local governments. This would be extended through September.
- Rental assistance. $25 billion will be provided for low-income families, $5 billion to help pay utility bills, and $5 billion to relieve homelessness will be provided. The federal eviction moratorium will also be extended through Sept. 30.
- Nutrition assistance. There will be a 15 percent increase in food stamp benefits through September and billions of dollars to help secure people secure food.
- Child care funding and tax credits. Billions will be added to an emergency fund and $15 billion will be granted to child care providers. Also, the child tax credit would be increased to as much as half of all spending on children under the age of 13.
- Increased tax credits. The child tax credits will be increased and made fully refundable, while childless adults will see tax credits expanded.
- Health insurance subsidies. The plan calls for Congress to help subsidize health insurance premiums and expand the Affordable Care Act’s subsidies so people pay less for coverage, as well as extra funding for veterans and for other services.
- Emergency paid leave. People who are sick, quarantining, or caring for children will receive 14 weeks of paid leave, and the government will reimburse small businesses for providing leave.
- Aid for small businesses, states, and schools. More money will be granted to the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses, money will be given to state and local governments, and colleges, schools, and transit agencies will also receive extra funding. Money will also be provided for vaccinations, testing, and hiring extra health workers.
In addition, unlike the Trump administration, Biden has pledged to make clear the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and will urge people to wear face masks, while also mandating them where possible. Also, Biden has set an ambitious vaccination goal: 100 million vaccine doses administered in his first 100 days in office.
With regard to housing, Biden proposes providing, via refundable tax credits, money to help more people afford a down payment to purchase a home and provide more rental aid to low-income Americans. He also expects to add credits to build up more rental housing in low-income areas. There will also be more rules to make housing more equitable, by trying to root out systemic racism in the housing market, especially for Black Americans, such as by reducing interest rates and other biases.
Climate change is expected to be a big part of the Biden agenda. Biden is expected to roll back hundreds of Trump administration changes that loosened regulation with everything related to the environment and will rejoin the Paris Agreement, a global pact to reduce the impact of climate change and keep global temperatures from increasing above 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, as soon as possible. Trump left the agreement in November, making the U.S. the only country to not be in it.
Biden will also switch federal vehicles to run on electricity instead of gas and provide more money to developing clean energy. He also set ambitious goals for America to run on clean energy and ultimately net-zero emissions.
The Biden administration has also proposed sweeping immigration reform. The Trump administration-imposed immigration ban on Muslim nations will be rescinded via executive action, while 11 million undocumented immigrants currently residing in the U.S. could receive a pathway to citizenship. The Mexican border wall, a major part of Trump’s campaign, though none of it would be torn down due to the costs involved, Biden has pledged to halt all further construction on it.
Biden is also expected to raise the refugee admission cap from 15,000 annually up to 125,000, a slight increase from the 110,000 cap set at the end of the Obama administration. He is also under pressure to allow lots of people barred entry to the U.S. by Trump administration rules to enter the U.S. This group of people includes U.S. residents, relatives of citizens, refugees, asylum seekers, and lots more.
Under a Democratic administration, we can also expect to see health care reform. The ACA, a cornerstone of the Obama administration’s health care policy and passed under a Democratic 60-seat majority in the Senate, has been subject to repeated attempts from the Trump administration to repeal or reduce its power. Biden has said he will further strengthen the ACA. The Biden administration will also negotiate drug prices, which would help reduce the amount spent on drug prescriptions.
We could also see further expansion to abortion and contraceptives, including funding Planned Parenthood, a pro-abortion rights group and abortion clinic provider, as well as potentially codifying the Roe v. Wade (1973) Supreme Court decision, which legalized abortion nationwide, into federal law. Benefits removed by the Trump administration for LGBTQ individuals are likely to be reinstated. Finally, Biden has also expressed support for a public health insurance option available to all Americans, so we may see that too.
Under the Obama administration, Biden has developed numerous proposals to increase gun control in the U.S. He has a long history of battling the National Rifle Association, which recently announced it would be relocating to Texas. Some of his likely priorities include stricter background checks for gun sales, implementing gun buyback programs, and banning certain assault and high-capacity weapons and magazines.
Finally, with regard to taxes, Biden is expected to reverse the Trump-sponsored Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. That bill cut taxes on corporations, and actually increased taxes for many people living in high-tax states like California, by capping the state and local tax (SALT) reduction usually available for filing federal tax. Instead of granting tax breaks to wealthy individuals and corporations, individuals making more than $400,000 a year would see taxes increase, while low-income individuals will see new tax benefits.
Related to taxes, Biden has also proposed increasing the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour, not increased since 2009, to $15 an hour. A number of states and localities already mandate $15 per hour minimum wages, while some states, like Florida, have passed measures to gradually increase the minimum wage up to $15 over the course of a few years. Doing so could help 17 million workers, although it might cause 1.3 million others to lose their jobs.
In conclusion, we could be seeing a number of sweeping reforms both economically and socially, possibly moving the country further to the left. With tax hikes for large corporations, increased benefits for low-income individuals, health care reform, phasing out fossil fuels, and more, we could see some more key Democratic agenda be implemented over the next few months and years.