1、CRS INSIGHT Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress INSIGHTINSIGHTi i The COVID-19-Related Fiscal Response: Recent Actions and Future Options August 31, 2021 The federal response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has included programs providing economic relief to individual
2、s, businesses, and state and local governments. Expiration or exhaustion of several of these programs has generated congressional discussions on the effect extending some of these programs could have on the U.S. economys short- and long-term performance. This Insight briefly summarizes the fiscal po
3、licy response to COVID-19, highlights some programs that are near expiration or exhaustion of funding, and discusses underlying economic issues. For a full list of expiring provisions, see CRS Report R46704, Pandemic-Related Provisions Expiring in the 117th Congress. State of the Economy The COVID-1
4、9 pandemic generated a sudden and severe decline in economic activity. The national unemployment rate rose from 3.5% in February 2020 to 14.7% in April 2020, the highest monthly rate ever recorded (dating back to 1948). Real GDP declined at an annual rate of 31.2% in the second quarter of 2020, whic