Nearly a quarter of the United States population is struggling to make ends meet during the pandemic, according to the Census Bureau.
The federal agency taps the opinions of people on a weekly basis, and its latest survey found that over 76 million people have a “somewhat” or “very” difficult time paying usual household expenses, such as rent or mortgage, food costs, and car payments.
There are roughly 330 million people currently living in the U.S., according to the Census Bureau.
This is the first year that the Census Bureau embarked on polling people’s ability to pay everyday expenses. Therefore, there is no direct comparison to how many people struggled with this situation in prior years, according to a spokesperson.
Still, a 2019 Federal Reserve report showed that 1 in 10 people struggled to make ends meet in 2018. While the Fed’s report is not a direct comparison to the Census Bureau’s report, the difference between the two suggests that the pandemic, which has killed millions of jobs and permanently closed scores of businesses, could have tripled the number of people having difficulty paying household bills in 2020.
The Census Bureau report also shows that over a third (27.5 million) of the people who have at least some trouble paying everyday bills rely on credit cards or loans to meet those expenses. Such payments must be paid back with interest.
While millions of people struggle to make ends meet, Washington has been incapable of agreeing to provide additional relief to those seeking financial aid and to businesses struggling to stay open.
President Trump announced Tuesday that he had halted negotiations with Democrats for a new round of federal coronavirus aid, tweeting that Speaker Nancy Pelosi “is not negotiating in good faith” and is seeking too much money.
Later on Tuesday, Trump reversed his position in a tweet, saying he would support relief for the airline industry and small businesses.
Pelosi, a California Democrat, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are the lead negotiators in the relief talks. Talks between the two halted momentarily after Trump’s initial tweet that called off the negotiation. Those talks continued after the president switched his position.
Still, it remains unlikely that Washington will advance a relief package containing a new round of stimulus checks or enhanced unemployment benefits before the election, as negotiators can’t agree on how much the relief should cost.
Democrats support a package costing $2.4 trillion, while Republicans back a plan with a price tag that is no more than $1.6 trillion. While the two sides can’t agree, people struggle to meet everyday expenses.
