The House voted Thursday to approve the revised Heroes Act, which contains a provision to help the Broadway industry.
The new version of the Heroes Act includes the Save Our Stages provision, which would provide $10 billion in grants to live venue operators, producers, promoters and talent representatives, including those in the theater industry. However, the $2.2 trillion stimulus package is not expected to pass the Republican-controlled Senate.
Senate Republicans said Saturday that they would delay further legislative work until Oct. 19, due to the spread of Covid-19 among elected officials.
As of last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who is representing the White House, were still meeting to negotiate a separate coronavirus relief bill, according to media reports.
In a press conference Thursday morning, Pelosi said she felt it was important for the House to vote on the bill, despite known objections from Republicans over the cost of the bill. At $2.2 trillion, the revised bill is less expensive than its previous iteration.
“It’s important for people to see that we completely identify with the concerns that they have and how we have allocated the resources necessary to get the job done,” Pelosi said.
Other areas of disagreement include continued unemployment assistance, state and local funding, testing and tracing measures during the pandemic and the total budget for the appropriations section of the bill.
“We’re coming closer on small business. But we have the restaurant and small venues for stages, et cetera; we’re not in agreement as to how that all would be treated,” Pelosi said.
