A COVID-19 pandemic relief bill was signed into law by Governor Tom Wolf on Friday.
Senate Bill 109 provides $912 million in assistance to help those who have been hit hardest by the pandemic. The bill includes nearly $570 million for rent and utility assistance, another $145 million to help out the hospitality industry, and $197 million for educational programs. Some of the money will come from a state worker’s compensation fund, while most of the money is federal aid approved by Congress in December.
Along with distributing money, the bill will carry a provision that will clear up any uncertainty over whether federal pandemic aid, including paycheck protection program payments and direct stimulus payments to taxpayers, would be marked as taxable income in Pennsylvania. According to the bill, they will not be marked as taxable income.
State Senator Joe Pittman, who was the prime sponsor of the bill, called it a good end to a turbulent week of state government, but the bipartisan support of this bill was encouraging.
The bill had passed unanimously in the PA House and Senate.
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