TBA Law Blog

TBA Law Blog

New GOP Stimulus Includes Liability Immunity, No Eviction Protection

Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Jul 28, 2020

Senate Republican leaders unveiled a plan to provide an additional $1 trillion in coronavirus relief funding this week, Bloomberg reports. The “HEALS” Act also provides liability protection from COVID-19-related lawsuits for businesses, schools, charities through Oct. 1, 2024, so long as the organizations made “reasonable” efforts to follow public health guidelines and did not commit acts of “gross negligence” or “intentional misconduct.” In addition, the plan would move medical liability claims against caregivers to federal courts and protect them from liability unless they engaged in gross negligence or intentional misconduct. The plan also contains a number of business tax provisions, including tax breaks for meals and entertainment, tax credits for expenses to protect workers and customers against the virus, an employee retention tax credit, and tax credits to spur U.S. manufacturing of personal protective equipment. Finally, the proposal includes a second round of stimulus payments, a new formula for enhanced unemployment benefits, extension of the Paycheck Protection Program, funds for states to ramp up testing and contact tracing, and funds for schools to prepare for fall classes. Despite reports that the bill would include an extension of an eviction moratorium originally included in the CARES Act, no such provision was part of the final proposal, NBC News reports.

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