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Bills Introduced: Reimbursements for the child care operational emergency costs of certain institutions during the COVID-19 pandemic; provide states and Indian tribes with flexibility in administering the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program; emergency grants to states and Indian tribes to provide financial support for low-income individuals; bill to increase the age of eligibility for children to receive benefits under the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)   Weekly Legislative Update May 11… more »

Rose Madeline Mula writes: I have thought about whom I would like to be isolated with if given the chance. Obviously, my first choice would be those I love — especially any of them who can cook. Other than that, who? No, not George Clooney. There would be way too much pressure to try to look good 24/7. Instead, it would be very handy to have a tech support guy or gal ensconced in the guest room to solve my inevitable computer glitches ... a plumber (clogged toilets are my nightmare, second only to a shortage of toilet paper) ... an electrician (in case of a repeat of my recent smoke detector catastrophe when all three failed simultaneously on a Saturday night and each screamed “EVACUATE!” every five seconds) ... And if one of these guys or gals knows how to fold a fitted sheet, that would be a big plus. more »

While the coronavirus economic shock appears to be the largest on record, the fiscal response has also been the fastest and largest response for any postwar downturn ... At the Fed, we will continue to use our tools to their fullest until the crisis has passed and the economic recovery is well under way. Recall that the Fed has lending powers, not spending powers. A loan from a Fed facility can provide a bridge across temporary interruptions to liquidity, and those loans will help many borrowers get through the current crisis. But the recovery may take some time to gather momentum, and the passage of time can turn liquidity problems into solvency problems. Additional fiscal support could be costly, but worth it if it helps avoid long-term economic damage and leaves us with a stronger recovery. This tradeoff is one for our elected representatives, who wield powers of taxation and spending. more »

The most-current resources related to the COVID-19 pandemic from the economists and staff of the [Federal Reserve] Research Division: preliminary and published analyses, daily data updates and projections, data tools, and a timeline of related events and policy responses. For more related analysis and resources from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, see the Bank's official COVID-19 page. more »