Trump signs Covid-19 relief package preventing government shutdown

US President Donald Trump signed a bill on Sunday to approve the $2.3tn pandemic and spending package that would restore benefits to millions of American citizens.

By signing the bill, Trump prevented a federal government shutdown barely a month before leaving office on 20 January.

The measure adds a $300 per week federal unemployment supplement through mid-March. It sends $600 direct payments to most individuals, and adds $600 for every child.

The legislation includes another round of relief for small businesses and puts nearly $30bn into distributing Covid-19 vaccines and ensuring Americans can get shots for free. The measure also directs more than $20bn to state Covid-19 testing and contact tracing efforts.

The bill also extends the eviction moratorium and puts $25bn into rental assistance.

Trump had initially threatened to block the bill when it was approved by Congress last week but backed down after coming under pressure from lawmakers of both parties.

“As president, I have told Congress that I want far less wasteful spending and more money going to the American people in the form of $2,000 checks per adult and $600 per child.

“I am signing this bill to restore unemployment benefits, stop evictions, provide rental assistance, add money for PPP, return our airline workers back to work, add substantially more money for vaccine distribution, and much more.”

After signing the bill Trump said that “much more money is coming,” in a statement issued from his golf resort in West Palm Beach.

The late signing of the bill, which has been ready since Christmas Day for the President to approve, had consequences, as two federal programs providing unemployment aid expired on Saturday.

The expired programs could affect an estimated 14m people who could temporarily lose unemployment insurance.

That program made unemployment insurance available to freelancers, gig workers and others normally not eligible.