Well it appears Congress has finally agreed to give Americans a holiday gift in the form of Covid-19 relief package worth $900 billion. Both Houses of Congress are expected to pass the measure Monday.

Every man, woman and child will receive a $600 check (the amounts decrease for individuals with more than $75,000 in income or $150,000 for couples).

Small businesses get an additional boost as well. There’s $284 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program that provides loans to small businesses to keep employees on the payroll. These loans are forgivable if the owners keep workers on staff.

There’s also an extension to unemployment payments as well as an additional $300 stipend from the feds a week for those collecting unemployment through March.

It is about time that Congress acted, however the benefits outlined above do not get you anywhere near the almost trillion dollar spending bill. There’s plenty of pork in the bill.

There’s $2.7 billion for private colleges to offer grants. Another $15 billion in grants for theater operators and small performance venues.

The airlines get another $15 billion aid injection to return almost 32,000 furloughed workers because of the pandemic. Critics say it is too little too late for the industry.

As part of the negotiations businesses will now be allowed to right off 100% deduction of their restaurant bills. So should anyone actually come back to work in their Manhattan offices, this could help the struggling restaurant industry.

I’m still going through the bill and will update this post if I see anything else.