Iowa's nonpartisan Legislative Service Agency estimated Monday that the plan - in addition to the payments to individuals - will funnel nearly $4.5 billion to Iowa state and local governments to help deal with pandemic costs. adults, an extension of federal unemployment benefits and funding to expand COVID-19 testing and assist administration of COVID-19 vaccines.
'Sending Doug Emhoff and Tom Vilsack to Des Moines doesn't change the fact that Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion boondoggle of a spending bill is full of pork and unrelated projects that have nothing to do with directly combating COVID,” Joyce's statement said.Ī centerpiece of the package is $1,400 stimulus payments to most U.S. In a statement Monday, national Republican Party spokesman Michael Joyce called the package 'a progressive wish list.” The federal pandemic relief package did not receive any votes of support from congressional Republicans. Urban Dreams and SALUD are charity organizations that serve underserved and underrepresented populations. The roundtable discussion also included Carla Peterman, a volunteer with Food Bank of Iowa Izaah Knox, executive director of Urban Dreams and Diane Daniels, founder of SALUD: Multicultural Coalition of Storm Lake. That's why the president and vice president went forward with this,” she said. 10 derecho.ĭuring a roundtable discussion, Axne said former President Barack Obama was hesitant to approve a stimulus package that reached $1 trillion, and praised President Joe Biden and Congress their willingness to pass a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package. The volunteers filled plastic bags with fruit, juice, cereal, microwaveable pasta and other food.įood pantries in the Corridor also have reported spiking demand in the pandemic as people lost their jobs and also faced costly damages in the Aug.
The group also observed four volunteers packing food bags that will be distributed to schools and given to students to take home. 'The need immediately doubled and we had to do that to get food to people,” Book said. You will begin to receive our Daily On Iowa Politics updates. Army National Guard helped the food bank with distribution efforts. The group walked among boxes stacked ceiling high in a warehouse with 20-foot ceilings and about the length of a football field.ĭuring the tour, Book told Emhoff that in April 2020, roughly 5,000 people attended a drive-through event at Food Bank of Iowa. Vilsack called the food assistance benefits increase 'a significant step forward,” and Emhoff called it 'a massive victory for Americans all over the country.”ĭuring the event, Food Bank of Iowa Chief Executive Officer Michelle Book guided Emhoff, Vilsack and Axne on a tour of the facility. Vilsack, during Monday's event, said that will boost benefits roughly $28 per person per month, or more than $100 per month for a household of four. The federal agriculture department, which administers the program, said the increase passed as part of the American Rescue Plan will provide an estimated $3.5 billion to households nationwide experiencing food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Emhoff announced a 15 percent increase in benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for the next six months.