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Posted: 2021-02-02T21:06:49Z | Updated: 2021-02-03T21:58:53Z

Democrats have officially started the process of getting their nearly $2 trillion COVID-19 relief bill passed with or without Republicans support.

On Tuesday, Senate Democrats voted to advance a resolution that would allow for $1.9 trillion in new spending through a special process called budget reconciliation. Legislation passed through budget reconciliation only needs a simple majority to pass. Otherwise, Democrats would need to win the support of at least 10 Republicans in order to defeat a filibuster, which requires at least 60 votes to overcome.

With 50 seats in the Senate and Vice President Kamala Harris as the tie-breaking vote, Democrats wont need Republican support if they choose to push their COVID-19 proposal through reconciliation.

The budget resolution came with instructions to pass up to $1.9 trillion in additional spending that Democrats say they want to put toward $1,400 checks, extending unemployment insurance programs currently set to expire in March through September, and increasing jobless benefits to $400 per week instead of the current $300. They also want to pass $350 billion in funding for states, cities and tribes, as well as funds for vaccines, schools, public transit and more.

With this budget resolution, the Democratic Congress is paving the way for the landmark Biden-Harris coronavirus package that will crush the virus and deliver real relief to families and communities in need, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a joint statement . We are hopeful that Republicans will work in a bipartisan manner to support assistance for their communities, but the American people cannot afford any more delays and the Congress must act to prevent more needless suffering.