The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic — CBO
Summary
A Congressional Budget Office publication dated September 2021 on the budgetary effects of two laws enacted in response to the 2020–2021 coronavirus pandemic: the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N (P.L. 116-260, enacted December 27, 2020) and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2, enacted March 11, 2021). Its summary table estimates increases in the deficit over 2021–2030 of 868 and 1,856 billion dollars for the two laws. Following tables list discretionary outlays by agency and describe mandatory spending on unemployment benefits, assistance to individuals, assistance to businesses, state, local and tribal governments, and Medicare. Business items include $261 billion for PPP loans and $29 billion for grants to restaurants and bars. The publication closes with notes and a list of abbreviations.
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The Budgetary Effects of Major
Laws Enacted in Response to the Congressional Budget Office
2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic,
Nonpartisan Analysis for the U.S. Congress
December 2020 and March 2021
September 2021
In December 2020 and March 2021, two major laws were enacted in response to the
Effects on the Budget p. 1
2020–2021 coronavirus pandemic. In the table below, the Congressional Budget Office
Discretionary Outlays p. 2
summarizes their estimated effects on federal spending, revenues, and budget deficits.
Mandatory Outlays p. 3
Subsequent tables provide more detail about discretionary outlays from appropriations in the
Revenues p. 13
laws and how the laws affect mandatory spending, revenues, and mandates imposed on the
private sector. The information is drawn from CBO’s cost estimates for the two laws. Mandates p. 15
Notes and Abbreviations p. 16
This publication is a companion to Congressional Budget Office, The Budgetary
Effects of Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic, March
and April 2020 (June 2020), www.cbo.gov/publication/56403.a
ESTIMATED EFFECTS ON THE BUDGET, 2021–2030 (IN BILLIONS OF DOLLARS)
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Increase in Discretionary Outlays 185 0
Increase in Mandatory Outlays 677 1,803
Decrease in Revenues 5 53
Increase in the Deficit 868 1,856
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 1
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
DISCRETIONARY OUTLAYS FROM APPROPRIATIONS IN THE LAW, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Medical Care and Research Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund: $47 billion to prepare
Related to the Pandemic for and respond to the pandemic
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: $8 billion to prepare for and
respond to the pandemic
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: $4 billion for
health surveillance and program support
National Institutes of Health: $1 billion to prepare for and respond to the
pandemic
Food and Drug Administration: $0.1 billion to prepare for and respond to the
pandemic
Assistance to Individuals Administration for Children and Families: $10 billion for the Child Care and
Development Block Grant and $0.3 billion for Head Start programs
Federal Emergency Management Agency: $2 billion for funeral expenses
Administration for Community Living: $0.1 billion for aging and disability
services
Assistance to Businesses; State, Department of Education: $82 billion for the Education Stabilization Fund
Local, and Tribal Governments; (including $54 billion for the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency
Relief Fund and $23 billion for the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund)
Other Countries; and
Institutions Federal Transit Administration: $14 billion for transit infrastructure grants
Federal Highway Administration: $10 billion for highway infrastructure
programs
Department of Housing and Urban Development: $2 billion for Community
Development Block Grants
Federal Aviation Administration: $2 billion for grants to airports
National Railroad Passenger Corporation: $1 billion for pandemic response
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: $0.3 billion to respond
to the pandemic domestically and internationally
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 2
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Unemployment Benefits Extends PUA through March 14, 2021, and allows people to claim an Extends PUA from March 15, 2021, to September 6, 2021, and increases the
additional 11 weeks of benefits, for a total of 50 weeks. (PUA, which was total number of available weeks of benefits from 50 to 74
established by the CARES Act, consists of unemployment benefits for people
Extends PEUC from March 15, 2021, to September 6, 2021, and increases
who are unemployed, partially unemployed, or otherwise unable to work
the total number of available weeks of benefits from 24 to 49
because of the pandemic but who would not otherwise have been eligible
for unemployment benefits. Those people include self-employed workers, Extends Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation at an additional
independent contractors, and people without enough work history to qualify $300 per week from March 15, 2021, until September 6, 2021
for ordinary unemployment benefits.)
Provides an additional $100 each week from March 15, 2021, through
Extends PEUC through March 14, 2021, and allows people to claim an September 6, 2021, to people who received at least $5,000 in self-
additional 11 weeks of benefits, for a total of 24 weeks. (The PEUC program employment income in the most recent tax year and who receive an
provides additional weeks of benefits to people who have exhausted regular unemployment benefit other than PUA
state unemployment benefits.)
Extends the full federal financing of extended unemployment benefits
Allows people receiving PUA and PEUC before March 14, 2021, to continue through September 6, 2021
to claim weeks of benefits through April 10, 2021
Extends increased federal funding for short-time compensation programs
Reestablishes Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation by through September 6, 2021
providing a weekly supplement of $300, for up to 11 weeks, to people in
all unemployment benefit programs from December 27, 2020, through Temporarily waives the accrual of interest on federal loans to state
March 14, 2021 unemployment trust funds
Provides an additional $100 each week from December 27, 2020, through
March 14, 2021, to people who received at least $5,000 in self-employment
income in the most recent tax year and who receive an unemployment
benefit other than PUA
Extends the full federal financing of extended unemployment benefits
through March 14, 2021
Extends increased federal funding for short-time compensation programs
through March 14, 2021
Temporarily waives the accrual of interest on federal loans to state
unemployment trust funds
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 3
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Assistance to Individuals Provides funding resulting in outlays of: Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
• $25 billion for rental assistance to low-income households that are at risk • $42 billion for rental and mortgage assistance, homeless services, and
of housing instability and that have members who are unemployed or housing counseling
have experienced financial hardship • $1 billion for the Nutrition Assistance Program in Puerto Rico, the
• $0.6 billion for the Nutrition Assistance Program in Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa • $1 billion for a newly established Pandemic Emergency Fund, which
• $0.2 billion for meals offered through aging and disability services makes grants to states and Indian tribes for nonrecurring short-term
programs benefits, such as cash and vouchers, for eligible low-income families
Provides a refundable tax credit of $600 per qualifying adult and $600 per
• $0.7 billion for housing assistance, infrastructure, economic
development, and other services for Native Americans
dependent for taxpayers with income below specified limits
• $0.5 billion to fund an increase in certain benefits under the Special
Makes certain modifications to the tax credits provided by the CARES Act Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children and
$0.4 billion for activities to increase participation in that program
Increases SNAP benefits through June 2021
• $0.5 billion for grants to help low-income households with the costs of
Expands eligibility for SNAP drinking-water and wastewater services
• $0.4 billion for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program
Pays schools a portion of the reimbursements from the Child Nutrition • $0.3 billion for Assistance to Firefighters Grants and the Staffing for
Program that they lost between March 2020 and June 2020 because of the Adequate Fire and Emergency Response program
pandemic • $0.1 billion for continued assistance to railroad workers
Simplifies determination of eligibility for the P-EBT program for children in • $0.1 billion for humanitarian relief
qualifying day care facilities • $0.04 billion for the Commodity Supplemental Food Program
Excludes emergency financial aid from gross income for tax purposes and Provides a refundable tax credit of $1,400 per qualifying adult and $1,400
prevents such aid from reducing tax credits for education per dependent for taxpayers with income below specified limits
Expands the child tax credit for 2021 and allows taxpayers to receive it
before filing tax returns
Provides payments to U.S. territories for the cost of the child tax credit,
beginning in 2021
Increases the amount of the EITC for taxpayers with no qualifying children,
and expands eligibility for the credit to higher-income taxpayers and to
certain childless taxpayers who are younger than 25 or older than 65, for tax
year 2021
Allows people to use earnings from tax year 2019 instead of from tax year
2021 to qualify for the EITC
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 4
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Assistance to Individuals Allows taxpayers whose children fail to meet certain identification
(Continued) requirements to claim the EITC for taxpayers with no qualifying children,
allows separated spouses to claim the EITC, and increases the amount of
investment income that disqualifies a taxpayer from receiving the EITC,
starting in tax year 2021
Makes payments to certain U.S. territories related to the cost of each
territory’s EITC
Expands the child and dependent care tax credit available to taxpayers for
tax year 2021
Increases SNAP benefits through September 2021
Expands eligibility for the Child and Adult Care Food Program at emergency
homeless shelters to people younger than 25 for the duration of the public
health emergency
Expands the P-EBT program by providing benefits in the summer once
schools have been closed for at least five consecutive days
Extends P-EBT for the duration of the public health emergency
Expands eligibility to children younger than 6 in households that receive
Nutrition Assistance Program benefits in Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of
the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa
Expands through 2030 the number of federal employees with COVID-19 who
are eligible for medical, wage replacement, and death benefits under the
Federal Employees’ Compensation Act
Extends enhanced benefits to unemployed railroad workers through
August 29, 2021
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 5
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Assistance to Businesses Provides funding resulting in outlays of: Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
• $261 billion for PPP loans • $29 billion for grants to restaurants and bars that lost revenue because
• $20 billion for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program to provide cash of the pandemic
advances to small businesses in low-income communities • $15 billion for passenger air carriers and related contractors
• $16 billion for passenger air carriers and related contractors • $15 billion for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program to provide cash
• $15 billion for operators of live performance venues advances to small businesses in low-income communities
• $12 billion to support community development financial institutions and • $9 billion for states, territories, and municipalities to fund financing
minority depository institutions programs for small businesses
• $4 billion to pay borrowers’ principal and interest on SBA loans • $8 billion for grants to airports for operations, debt service, and other costs
• $2 billion for fee reductions and other modifications to SBA loans • $4 billion to expand eligibility for financial assistance through the PPP to
• $2 billion for certain transportation businesses, such as those that certain nonprofit organizations and digital media companies
operate passenger vessels or motor coaches • $3 billion for payroll support to eligible aviation manufacturers and
• $1 billion to expand access to broadband Internet maintenance firms
• $0.3 billion for telehealth services • $2 billion for the National Railroad Passenger Corporation
Extends the refundable credits against payroll taxes established under FFCRA
• $1 billion for grants to operators of live performance venues and to
other entities
to compensate employers for mandated paid sick leave and family and
medical leave through March 31, 2021
• $0.2 billion for the Community Navigator Program to assist small
businesses
Extends the period in which the SBA may guarantee PPP loans • $0.2 billion for states and other entities to help small businesses take
advantage of government resources available during the pandemic,
Cancels $147 billion in budget authority that was previously provided in the among other purposes
CARES Act for the SBA’s PPP and debt relief programs
Extends and modifies the refundable credits against payroll taxes established
under FFCRA to compensate employers for mandated paid sick leave and
family and medical leave through September 30, 2021
Extends a refundable tax credit against payroll taxes to employers that shut
down because of coronavirus-related mandates, or that saw a significant
decline in revenue, through December 31, 2021
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 6
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Assistance to State, Local, and Provides funding resulting in outlays of $0.1 billion to states for the Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
Tribal Governments administration of SNAP • $362 billion for the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds
• $28 billion for Federal Transit Administration grants to transit agencies
• $8 billion for state, local, and territorial public health workforces
• $3 billion for Economic Development Administration grants to
economically distressed communities
• $1 billion for states for the administration of SNAP
• $0.9 billion by the Bureau of Indian Affairs for tribal housing
improvements and government services
• $0.1 billion for the Medical Reserve Corps
• $0.03 billion for improvements in online purchasing and technology
for SNAP
Medicare Increases payment rates for physicians in 2021 Modifies the floor on the geographic wage index for states designated
all-urban
Eliminates cuts that sequestration would otherwise have required through
March 2021 Modifies certain payments to ambulance providers for the duration of the
public health emergency
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 7
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Medicaid and CHIP Increases the federal matching rate for Medicaid by 5 percentage points for
two years for states that newly expand coverage to adults made eligible by
the Affordable Care Act
Eliminates a statutory cap on the rebates that manufacturers must pay
Medicaid on covered outpatient drugs, beginning in 2024
Increases the federal matching rate by 10 percentage points from April 1,
2021, through March 31, 2022, for Medicaid spending on home- and
community-based services
Allows states, for a five-year period, to extend coverage to women enrolled
in Medicaid and CHIP for 12 months after the birth of a child
Increases the federal matching rate to 100 percent in Medicaid and CHIP
for coronavirus vaccinations until one year after the end of the public health
emergency; over the same period, requires states to provide coverage,
without cost sharing, for vaccinations and for related prevention and
treatment
Increases the federal matching rate to 85 percent in Medicaid, for 12 fiscal
quarters, for mobile and community-based crisis intervention services
Increases the annual allotment that states receive for Disproportionate Share
Hospital payments in Medicaid for any fiscal year in which the public health
emergency is in effect
Premium Tax Credits and Other Provides funding resulting in outlays of $0.02 billion for states to modernize
Health Insurance the health insurance marketplaces established under the Affordable Care Act
For coverage through the health insurance marketplaces established under
the Affordable Care Act, increases premium tax credits for most currently
eligible people, and expands eligibility to include people with income above
400 percent of the federal poverty level, through 2022
Increases premium tax credits for people receiving unemployment
compensation in 2021
Provides premium assistance to some COBRA enrollees through
September 30, 2021
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 8
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Other Health and Human Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
Services • $47 billion by HHS to test for, monitor, and trace infections
• $39 billion for the Child Care and Development Block Grant program,
including $24 billion for the new Child Care Stabilization Fund for
assistance to providers
• $15 billion for vaccine activities of HHS
• $10 billion for the purchase, production, and distribution of medical
supplies to respond to the pandemic and future health emergencies
• $9 billion for health care providers’ expenses and revenues lost because
of the pandemic
• $8 billion for community health centers
• $6 billion by the Indian Health Service for pandemic-related activities and
care
• $5 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
• $4 billion for community mental health services, youth suicide
prevention, and certified community behavioral health clinics
• $3 billion by the Centers for Disease Control for genomic sequencing,
global activities, and data modernization
• $1 billion for programs authorized by the Older Americans Act
• $1 billion for Head Start
• $1 billion by the Corporation for National and Community Service, mainly
to make new grants to community service programs and to increase the
living allowances of AmeriCorps volunteers
• $0.8 billion by the National Health Service Corps
• $0.7 billion to support coronavirus infection control and residents’ and
employees’ safety in skilled nursing facilities
• $0.5 billion for programs authorized by the Family Violence Prevention
and Services Act and for other programs to support survivors of sexual
assault and domestic violence
• $0.5 billion for rural hospitals and clinics to offer testing and vaccination,
increase health care capacity, and engage in other pandemic-related
efforts
• $0.4 billion for programs authorized by the Child Abuse Prevention and
Treatment Act
• $0.3 billion for programs authorized by the Elder Justice Act
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 9
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Other Health and Human • $0.3 billion for graduate medical education at health centers
Services (Continued) • $0.2 billion by the Nurse Corps
• $0.1 billion for the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting
program
• $0.05 billion for family planning
• $0.01 billion by HHS’s Office of Inspector General
• $0.01 billion to establish a National Technical Assistance Center for
Grandfamilies and Kinship Families
Permanently increases funding for the Child Care Entitlement to States from
$2.9 billion to $3.6 billion annually
Provides, for two years, a 100 percent federal matching rate for services to
Medicaid enrollees who get care in the Urban Indian Health Programs or the
Native Hawaiian Health Care System
Education Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
• $170 billion for education, including $123 billion for the Elementary and
Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund and $40 billion for the Higher
Education Emergency Relief Fund
• $7 billion to support emergency educational connections and devices
Agriculture Provides funding resulting in outlays of: Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
• $11 billion for support payments to producers of commodity crops, • $4 billion to purchase and distribute food and agricultural commodities
specialty crops, dairy, livestock, poultry, renewable fuels, and timber and and to maintain and improve the food supply chain
for supplemental funding for existing farm support programs • $4 billion to pay off certain loans taken out by farmers and ranchers
• $0.5 billion for dairy margin payments who are members of socially disadvantaged groups and to provide
• $0.4 billion for a dairy donation program an additional cash payment equal to 20 percent of the outstanding
• $0.2 billion for nutrition research indebtedness of those producers
• $0.1 billion for specialty crops • $1 billion to develop programs to assist socially disadvantaged farmers,
• $0.1 billion for local agricultural markets ranchers, and owners and operators of forest land and to help institutions
• $0.08 billion for the Farming Opportunities Training and Outreach program of higher education support socially disadvantaged groups
• $0.08 billion for a nutrition incentive program • $0.8 billion for U.S. food assistance to meet global food needs
• $0.06 billion for improvements to meat and poultry facilities • $0.05 billion for Department of Agriculture administrative expenses and
• $0.03 billion for farm stress programs oversight of pandemic-related programs
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 10
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Funding for Federal Agencies to Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
Respond to the Pandemic • $47 billion by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to respond to
major disasters and to cover funeral expenses related to COVID-19
• $10 billion for global response to the pandemic, Department of State
operations, and operations of the United States Agency for International
Development
• $2 billion by the Department of Labor for administrative and program
integrity activities associated with unemployment compensation
programs
• $1 billion by the IRS for activities related to tax credits and taxpayer
assistance and for modernizing and securing systems
• $1 billion by the SBA to administer programs and by the SBA’s Office of
Inspector General
• $0.4 billion by the IRS to facilitate advance payments of child tax credits
to taxpayers
• $0.4 billion by the Emergency Federal Employee Leave Fund to
reimburse agencies for pandemic-related leave taken by employees
• $0.2 billion by the Department of Labor for worker protection
• $0.1 billion by the Environmental Protection Agency for countering
pollution and environmental harm to minority and low-income
populations
• $0.08 billion by the Government Accountability Office to prevent, prepare
for, and oversee the federal response to COVID-19
• $0.07 billion for SBA disaster loans
• $0.05 billion for ensuring the safety of consumer products, including
those related to COVID-19
• $0.04 billion by the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee for
oversight of pandemic-related spending
• $0.03 billion by the Federal Trade Commission
• $0.02 billion for the Federal Aviation Administration’s and the
Transportation Security Administration’s emergency leave funds
• $0.01 billion by the White House to respond to COVID-19
Veterans Provides funding resulting in outlays of $17 billion by the Department of
Veterans Affairs for health care, job training, and administration
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 11
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS MANDATORY OUTLAYS, 2021–2030
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Miscellaneous Provides funding resulting in outlays of $2 billion by the FCC to reimburse Provides funding resulting in outlays of:
communications providers for the cost of removing and replacing equipment • $3 billion for the Economic Adjustment Assistance program
or services made or provided by entities that are deemed to pose a national • $1 billion by the Technology Modernization Service
security risk • $0.6 billion by the National Science Foundation
Rescinds certain amounts appropriated by the CARES Act for loans,
• $0.6 billion by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
loan guarantees, and grants, including assistance provided through the
• $0.5 billion for grants to fund arts and humanities, libraries and
museums, and the preservation and maintenance of Native American
Federal Reserve
languages
• $0.2 billion by the National Institute of Standards and Technology
• $0.2 billion by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
• $0.2 billion by the United States Digital Service
• $0.2 billion for the Federal Citizen Services Fund
• $0.1 billion by the Fish and Wildlife Service
• $0.1 billion for Emergency Management Performance Grants
• $0.03 billion by the Railroad Retirement Board for technology
improvements and staff
Provides assistance to certain multiemployer defined benefit pension plans
and reduces funding requirements for single-employer pension plans
Extends certain customs fees
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 12
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS REVENUES
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Unemployment Benefits Decreases revenues by partially reimbursing states that waive the one-week Decreases revenues by fully reimbursing states that waive the one-week
waiting period for the first week of regular unemployment benefits through waiting period for the first week of regular unemployment benefits through
March 14, 2021 September 6, 2021
Decreases revenues by shifting funding from the states to the federal Decreases revenues by shifting funding from the states to the federal
government for a portion of the regular unemployment compensation government for a portion of the regular unemployment compensation
benefits paid between December 27, 2020, and March 14, 2021, to people benefits paid between March 15, 2021, and August 29, 2021, to people who
who worked for public-sector entities and nonprofit organizations worked for public-sector entities and nonprofit organizations
Increases revenues because states respond to smaller balances in their Excludes from taxable income up to $10,200 of unemployment compensation
unemployment trust fund accounts by increasing their future collections of per recipient in 2020 for taxpayers with income below a certain threshold
unemployment taxes (which are recorded as federal revenues)
Increases revenues because states respond to smaller balances in their
unemployment trust fund accounts by increasing their future collections of
unemployment taxes (which are recorded as federal revenues)
Assistance to Individuals Provides a refundable tax credit of $600 per qualifying adult and $600 per Provides a refundable tax credit of $1,400 per qualifying adult and $1,400
dependent for taxpayers with income below specified limits per dependent for taxpayers with income below specified limits
Makes certain modifications to the tax credits provided by the CARES Act Expands the child tax credit for 2021 and allows taxpayers to receive it
before filing tax returns
Clarifies that personal protective equipment and supplies can be claimed as
part of the tax deduction for educators’ expenses Increases the amount of the EITC for taxpayers with no qualifying children,
and expands eligibility for the credit to higher-income taxpayers and to
Excludes emergency financial aid from gross income for tax purposes and certain childless taxpayers who are younger than 25 or older than 65, for tax
prevents such aid from reducing tax credits for education year 2021
Expands a waiver of early distribution penalties in certain pension plans that Allows people to use earnings from tax year 2019 instead of from tax year
was specified in the CARES Act 2021 to qualify for the EITC
Allows taxpayers whose children fail to meet certain identification
requirements to claim the EITC for taxpayers with no qualifying children,
allows separated spouses to claim the EITC, and increases the amount of
investment income that disqualifies a taxpayer from receiving the EITC,
starting in tax year 2021; expands the child and dependent care tax credit
available to taxpayers for tax year 2021
www.cbo.gov | @uscbo 13
The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW AFFECTS REVENUES
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Assistance to Businesses Extends the refundable credits against payroll taxes established under FFCRA Extends and modifies the refundable credits against payroll taxes established
to compensate employers for mandated paid sick leave and family and under FFCRA to compensate employers for mandated paid sick leave and
medical leave through March 31, 2021 family and medical leave through September 30, 2021
Extends repayment deadlines for certain deferred payroll taxes Extends a refundable tax credit against payroll taxes to employers that shut
down because of coronavirus-related mandates, or that saw a significant
decline in revenue, through December 31, 2021
Medicaid, CHIP, and Other Provides premium assistance to some COBRA enrollees through
Health Care Programs September 30, 2021
For coverage through the health insurance marketplaces established under
the Affordable Care Act, increases premium tax credits for most currently
eligible people, and expands eligibility to include people with income above
400 percent of the federal poverty level, through the end of 2022
Increases premium tax credits for people receiving unemployment
compensation in 2021
Eliminates the requirement that people repay any overpayments of premium
tax credits received for plan year 2020
Miscellaneous Provides assistance to certain pension plans Eliminates the ability of corporations based in the United States to elect
worldwide allocation of their interest expenses in calculating their income
from foreign sources to determine their allowable foreign tax credits
Provides assistance to certain multiemployer defined benefit pension plans
and reduces funding requirements for single-employer pension plans
Increases the number of employees for whom the limitation on the
deductibility of compensation of highly paid employees applies, starting in
tax years beginning after December 31, 2026
Modifies exceptions for reporting third-party network transactions described
in section 6050W of the Internal Revenue Code
Extends the limitation on how much noncorporate taxpayers may reduce
their income, for tax purposes, as a result of excess business losses
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The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020–2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
HOW THE LAW IMPOSES PRIVATE-SECTOR MANDATES d
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Divisions M and N b American Rescue Plan Act of 2021c
P.L. 116-260 P.L. 117-2
Enacted December 27, 2020 Enacted March 11, 2021
Mandate Costs CBO estimates that the mandates’ aggregate cost exceeds the UMRA CBO and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation estimate that the
threshold.e mandates’ aggregate cost exceeds the UMRA threshold.e
Defense Production Act Section 4 of UMRA excludes from the application of that act any legislative
provisions that are necessary for national security, and CBO has determined
that the provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act that amend the Defense
Production Act of 1950 fall under that exclusion.
Agriculture Requires livestock dealers to hold revenues and proceeds from cash sales in
a trust for the sellers’ benefit until full payment has been disbursed
Group Health Insurance Plans Requires group health insurance plans to provide additional information
about COBRA eligibility and assistance
Businesses Increases the cost of an existing mandate on commercial entities to pay fees Eliminates the ability of corporations based in the United States to elect
if the FCC increases annual fee collections worldwide allocation of their interest expenses in calculating their income
from foreign sources to determine their allowable foreign tax credits
Modifies exceptions for reporting third-party network transactions described
in section 6050W of the Internal Revenue Code
Increases the cost of an existing mandate on commercial entities required
to pay fees if the FCC increases annual fee collections to offset the costs of
implementing provisions in the act
Landlords Extends an existing executive order prohibiting landlords and owners of
residential properties from evicting residents
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The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020-2021 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 September 2021
Notes
Data sources: Congressional Budget Office; staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation.
Both laws shown provide mandatory spending for programs that typically are funded through the appropriation process. Those provisions and projected
outlays are included in the section dealing with mandatory outlays.
These estimates do not include the costs of implementing provisions that would be subject to subsequent appropriations.
Numbers may not add up to totals because of rounding.
In general, the increases in discretionary spending stemming from division M of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, are designated as emergency require-
ments in accordance with section 251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985. The Office of Management and Budget has adjusted
the limits on discretionary budget authority for 2021, which were established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (as amended), to accommodate that funding.
a. The laws analyzed in that publication were the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020, P.L. 116-123 (which will
increase the deficit by $8 billion over the 2020-2030 period, CBO estimates); the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, P.L. 116-127 ($192 billion); the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, P.L. 116-136 ($1,721 billion); and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act,
P.L. 116-139 ($483 billion).
b. Includes all spending and revenue provisions in division M (the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021) and division N
(Additional Coronavirus Response and Relief) of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. Other divisions of the law may also contain pandemic-related
spending and revenue provisions; those are not included here. CBO’s cost estimates for divisions M and N are available at www.cbo.gov/publication/56916
and www.cbo.gov/publication/56961.
c. Includes all spending and revenue provisions in the bill passed by the Senate on March 6, 2021. CBO’s cost estimate for the bill is available at
www.cbo.gov/publication/57056.
d. There are no intergovernmental mandates in either law. Also, this publication does not include analysis by the Joint Committee on Taxation of mandates in
the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.
e. CBO is required to estimate whether the annual cost of intergovernmental and private-sector mandates in legislation would exceed thresholds established
in UMRA. In 2020, those thresholds were $84 million for intergovernmental mandates and $168 million for private-sector mandates. The thresholds are
adjusted annually for inflation.
Abbreviations
CARES Act = Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and FFCRA = Families First Coronavirus Response Act PUA = Pandemic Unemployment Assistance
Economic Security Act HHS = Department of Health and Human Services = SBA= Small Business Administration
CHIP = Children’s Health Insurance Program IRS = Internal Revenue Service SNAP = Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
COBRA = Consolidated Omnibus Budget P-EBT = Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer Program
Reconciliation Act PEUC = Pandemic Emergency Unemployment UMRA = Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
EITC = earned income tax credit Compensation
FCC = Federal Communications Commission PPP = Paycheck Protection Program
This publication is available on CBO’s website at www.cbo.gov/publication/57343. CBO continually seeks feedback to make its work as useful as possible.
Please send any comments to communications@cbo.gov.
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