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IN LESS THAN TWO MONTHS AS MAJORITY LEADER, SCHUMER DELIVERS MASSIVE COVID RESCUE RELIEF TO CENTRAL NEW YORK; WITH CHECKS ON THE WAY & MILLIONS COMING TO CNY FAMILIES, WORKERS, FAMILIES, & SMALL BUSINESSES, SENATOR OUTLINES CENTRAL NY WINS

American Rescue Passage Means Help Is On The Way With $1,400 Direct Payments for Tens of Thousands Of Central New Yorkers, Nearly $900 Million In State & Local Aid, Rental Assistance, Pension Relief, And Historic Child Tax Credit Expansion

Deal Is On Top Of $150+ Billion Schumer Already Delivered To NY Earlier In Pandemic; Researchers Say Rescue Deal Will Also Cut Child Poverty In Half, Significantly Impacting Syracuse’s 44% Of Children Living Poverty

Schumer: CNY To Get A Big Slice of $100B Pie

Standing with New Yorkers who will be helped by an additional round of economic impact payments to weather the pandemic, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer announced that ‘help is on the way’ to Central New York as he details specifics from the American Rescue Plan he just led to passage in the U.S. Senate.

Schumer explained that over $22 Billion in Direct Payments for New Yorkers are included in the American Rescue Plan. The additional round of Economic Impact Payments will mean $1,400 for individuals making up to $75,000 per year and $2,800 for couples making up to $150,000 per year. Eligible families will also receive an additional $1,400 payment per child and adult dependent, amounting to $5,600 for an average family of four. He said nearly nine million New York households will receive this latest round of $1,400 direct payments. This relief is particularly critical as more than one in three households – including half of Black and Latino households – are currently struggling to pay for daily expenses. Specifically, the senator said, in Central New York, it is estimated that more than 706,000 households in the region will receive approximately $1.762 billion in checks, providing much needed relief for the 30.5% of Syracuse’s population living below the poverty line.

“For thousands of Central New Yorkers and their families, this much-needed and new round of economic stimulus payments will come just in time to help cover the costs of essential expenses like food, rent, the mortgage, even medical bills,” said Senator Schumer. “And today, I can tell each and every New Yorker that more than $22 billion dollars is on the way and these direct payments will be in their bank accounts in approximately two weeks because as soon as the president can sign the American Rescue Plan into law, the work will begin to get the checks out.”

Schumer detailed the American Rescue Plan’s tentative impact to New York as more than $100 Billion dollars. Researchers say the Plan will cut child poverty in half, which is especially significant for Syracuse as it struggles with one of the nation’s highest poverty rates. The deal includes the additional round of direct stimulus checks for thousands of Central New Yorkers, on top of aid to help schools reopen, an extension of the enhanced unemployment insurance benefits, critical pension relief, an expanded Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit, new rental assistance, revive the local economy and help solve Central New York’s budget woes, marking a not-too-soon moment of relief for countless families, workers, restaurants, more independent live venues and small businesses across the state. For Central New York’s restaurants, a national $28 billion national pot will be established upon the President’s signature, delivering on Senator Schumer’s push to help the restaurant industry.

Schumer also highlighted that researchers have said that the American Rescue Plan will cut the child poverty rate in half, greatly impacting Syracuse, where almost half of children – specifically 44% - live in poverty. This plan:

  • Makes the CTC fully refundable and increases the credit amount from $2,000 to $3,000 per child age 6 to 17 (and $3,600 per child below the age of 6). An estimated 3.56 million children across New York will benefit from this expanded tax credit, and it will lift 680,000 children in the state above or closer to the poverty line.
  • Strengthens the EITC for childless workers, many of whom are in lower-paid but essential jobs on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic response, benefitting 910,000 of these workers in New York.

With 46% of Onondaga County rental units currently occupied by tenants spending more than 30% of their income on housing, Schumer explained that rental assistance is also a necessary tool of fighting poverty. The American Rescue plan will provide $10 million in rental assistance directly to Onondaga County to combat homelessness.

Additionally, as part of the Schumer-led American Relief Plan, more than $23.8 billion will flow directly to New York state government(s) – including $126 million for the city of Syracuse, $90 million for Onondaga County, and over $34 million for county towns and villages – in addition to increasing education funding, transit funding and highways, vaccine distribution, COVID health funding, emergency rental and housing assistance and more.

Schumer was also able to secure more than $7 billion in transit funding for New York, with $34 million going directly to CENTRO and $12 million for Syracuse Hancock International Airport.

“Back in November, the American people and New Yorkers sent a crystal clear message: deliver the robust COVID relief this country needs or get out of the way. The deal we reached with the new Senate majority marks real relief to the tune of $100 billion for workers, families, healthcare, small businesses, including our hard-hit industries like restaurants, and New York—the things we need to support in order to weather this crisis and then work to recover,” Schumer added. “This marks the second biggest stimulus bill in the nation’s history—second to the CARES Act—and it comes just in time, because Central New Yorkers still need real help to get through this.”

Onondaga County Executive McMahon said, "Local Counties have been on the frontline since day one addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, and no one has understood that better than Senator Schumer. Thanks to his tireless efforts, Onondaga County will be able to receive desperately needed funding to not only make up for lost revenue but help us recover stronger than ever. McMahon continued, "As we ramp up vaccinations, work to reopen schools and rebuild our economy, I know Onondaga County can rely on Senator Schumer to be the advocate we need in Washington." 

The impact of the American Relief Plan on New York appear in the breakdown below. These numbers are tentative:

Funds for New York

  • State and Local Fiscal Relief for New York: $23.8 Billion
  • Medicaid FMAP Increase: $2.7 Billion($2.1 billion already delivered from Schumer pushing President Biden to extend through the end of the calendar year, in addition to approximately 600 million from a targeted enhanced FMAP for home and community-based services from this legislation)
  • Transit Agency Funding: $7+ Billion
  • Airport Funding: $418 Million
  • Amtrak Relief: $1.7 Billion (Relief for Amtrak to help maintain operations and other expenditures during the pandemic, especially in New York.)
  • Airline Payroll Support Program Enhancement: $15 Billion (The CARES Act Airline Payroll Support Program which will save thousands of New York airline and airline contractor jobs by keeping workers on payroll without furloughs or reducing pay rates and benefits until March 31, 2021 New York will receive sizable share of these funds.)
  • K-12 and Higher Education Funding: $11.9 Billion
  • Child Care and Help for NY Families: $5.3 Billion
  • Enhanced Unemployment Benefits for NYers: $21.7 Billion
  • Direct Payments to NYers: $22 Billion
  • New Covid-19 Vaccine Procurement and Testing: $4 Billion

Funds Available to Businesses Across New York:

  • Small Business, Restaurant, and Live Venue Relief: $57.8 Billion
  • Broadband Connectivity: $632 Million 

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