Biden signs executive order to speed up delivery of stimulus checks

U.S. President Joe Biden on Jan. 22 announced new executive actions aimed at providing economic relief to those affected by the coronavirus pandemic, including speeding up the roll-out of stimulus checks to millions of Americans, expanding food aid, increasing federal wages, and improving worker protections.

Biden signed an executive order that calls on the Treasury Department to consider revamping the delivery structure for stimulus checks, such as by establishing online tools for claiming payments, to ensure relief to eligible households who have yet to receive the checks.

Up to 8 million Americans entitled to financial assistance missed out on the first round of stimulus checks worth $1,200 issued in March 2020 under the CARES Act, according to the White House. Former President Donald Trump signed a $900 billion pandemic relief bill in December 2020 that included $600 stimulus checks to individuals, while Biden recently proposed a $1.9 trillion economic package that seeks to provide $1,400 in additional per-person payments.

Biden also directed the Labor Department to consider clarifying that individuals who refuse to work under unsafe conditions amid the pandemic can still receive unemployment insurance.

In addition, Biden tasked the Department of Agriculture to update its Thrifty Food Plan, which is used as a basis for designing food stamp program benefits, to "better reflect the modern cost of a healthy basic diet," according to the White House.

In another executive order, Biden asked the Office of Personnel Management to develop recommendations to pay more federal employees at least $15 per hour.

The measure also seeks to restore collective bargaining power and worker protections by revoking certain executive orders from Trump. It also directs government agencies to bargain over permissible, non-mandatory subjects of bargaining when contracts are up for negotiation, the White House said.