California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed a $100 billion state “Comeback Plan” budget package that includes tax relief and stimulus checks to help Californians recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Democratic governor told reporters that the package, SB 139, will provide financial assistance to Californians who need it the most, calling it the largest recovery plan in the nation.
“Harnessing the largest surplus in state history, we’re making transformative investments across the board that will help bring all our communities roaring back from the pandemic and pay dividends for generations to come,” Newsom said at Barrio Action Youth & Family Center in El Sereno.
It provides immediate cash relief to middle class families and businesses hit hardest by the pandemic, creating the biggest state tax rebate in American history and the largest small business relief package in the nation, Newsom’s office said in a press release.
Specifically, the package would send funds to small businesses and renters, and to Californians who have an annual salary of $75,000 and less.
It expands direct payments to middle class families for a total of $12 billion in stimulus payments that will go directly to middle class Californians and families, Newsom’s office said. Nearly two thirds of Californians will now qualify for a stimulus check of $600. Qualified families with children will receive an additional $500.
The administration noted that the state offers the largest renter assistance package in the country, with $5.2 billion set aside to assist low-income renters and landlords, covering 100 percent of back-rent and all prospective rent for “several months into the future.” A further $2 billion is available for past-due water and utility bills and funds for tenant legal assistance.
The package also provides $4 billion in direct grants to the state’s small businesses, on top of the $6.2 billion in tax relief, aimed to help small business owners. A $120 million tax credit grant program will also be created to incentivize businesses to relocate to California, Newsom’s office said.
“Through this comprehensive plan, the state is taking on the inequities laid bare by the pandemic, expanding our support for Californians facing the greatest hardships, increasing opportunity for every child, confronting homelessness head-on and doubling down on our work to build resilience against the climate change impacts that threaten California’s future,” Newsom said in a statement.
Newsom, who is facing recall election on Sept. 14, said at El Sereno that he is “mindful about the stresses and challenges” that the state still faces, but that he is “absolutely confident and enlivened by what this blueprint, what this ‘comeback plan’ here in the state of California offers 40 million Californians strong into the future.”
Hours earlier, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said the funds will help the state expand and implement programs that will have “lasting, positive impacts on our city and our communities.”
“Thanks to our Los Angeles legislative delegation, our city secured some big wins. I want to thank our delegation and Governor Newsom for the important resources that will be coming to our community to address homelessness, housing, economic recovery, climate change and more,” the mayor added.
“California is not only back, but California is once again asserting itself as the temple of the American economy,” Newsom added.
From The Epoch Times
