Last week, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar's office released a spreadsheet listing federal Provider Relief Fund payments to Bexar County providers, totaling about $224 million.

The nation’s top financial regulators told Congress Friday that threats to financial stability remain elevated even though the country has recovered from the worst economic shocks stemming from the COVID pandemic.

Federal Reserve officials agreed at their last meeting that if the economy continued to improve, they could start reducing their monthly bond purchases as soon as next month and bring them to an end by the middle of 2022.

The Senate parliamentarian has told Democrats that their newest proposal for helping millions of immigrants stay in the U.S. permanently could not be included in their $3.5 trillion social and environment bill.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is defending the ultra-low interest rate policies he has pursued since the pandemic decimated the economy more than 18 months ago.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says that President Joe Biden’s spending proposals represent will address long-overdue U.S. infrastructure needs and prepare the country to meet future challenges.

A rental crisis spurred by the pandemic prompted many states to make bold promises to help renters, but most failed to deliver on them after Congress passed the sweeping CARES Act in March 2020.

SAN ANTONIO – There is reason to check your credit reports if you made allowable deferred payments for homes, cars, college, credit cards and more during the COVID-19 pandemic. If the payments were reported as late, it could negatively hurt your credit score. Companies that offered federally-backed mortgages and student loans granted deferred payments with no impact to the borrower’s credit score. But, instead of listing the accounts as current, a Consumer Reports investigation found some companies reported those deferred payments as late, a mistake that can have a big impact on a credit score. To check for errors, log on to annualcreditreport.com to get free copies of your credit reports from all three bureaus, Experian, Equifax and Transunion.

All unemployment compensation received in 2019 must be reported on 2020 federal tax returns. Haywood also told KSAT that people who received unemployment benefits will not be eligible for the child credit. “Your state will send you Form 1099-G, which will show the amount of unemployment compensation paid to you during the year. If you repaid a portion of the benefits received, you can reduce the benefits received by the amount repaid,” according to H&R Block. While unemployment income is subject to federal and state taxes, Texas is one of 15 states that does not tax unemployment income because Texas does not have a state income tax.

BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – Converse Mayor Al Suarez says he has a list of wish list items he hopes the CARES Act funds will cover for his residents. The amount given to the cities and towns was based on the population. The city needed to ensure it had the equipment necessary if the COVID-19 cases continued to go up in the area. Some cities -- such as St. Hedwig, Von Ormy and Grey Forest -- didn’t use any of the money budgeted to them, according to a county list. Budgets, money disbursed to 26 cities, towns in Bexar County (Bexar County)The federal government had given a Dec. 30, deadline for the funds to be used, so the county gave the cities and towns an Oct. 30 deadline to have documentation into the auditor’s office.

The holdups mean a weekend session now appears virtually certain, and a top lawmaker warned that a government shutdown this weekend can't be ruled out. Now, Republicans are motivated chiefly to extend business subsidies and some jobless benefits, and provide money for schools and vaccines. The urgency was underscored Thursday by the weekly unemployment numbers, which revealed that 885,000 people applied for jobless benefits last week, the highest weekly total since September. Some Democrats also mourned the exclusion of a $500 million aid package to help states run their elections. The emerging package would combine the $900 billion in COVID-19 relief with a $1.4 trillion government-wide funding bill.

WASHINGTON – Congressional negotiators closed in Wednesday on a $900 billion COVID-19 economic relief package that would deliver additional help to businesses, $300 per week jobless checks, and $600 stimulus payments to most Americans. But lawmakers briefed on the outlines of the aid bill freely shared them. President-elect Joe Biden is eager for an aid package to prop up the economy and deliver direct aid to the jobless and hungry, even though the package falls short of what Democrats want. The frightening, record surge in COVID caseloads and deaths, combined with troubling economic indicators, however, is mandating an agreement, though the emerging package contains less economic stimulus than the March aid bill. With Congress otherwise getting ready to close up shop, lawmakers are eager to use the relief package to carry other unfinished business.

The duo were the architects of the $1.8 trillion CARES Act, the landmark relief bill passed in March. Here are the top issues for the end-stage COVID-19 relief talks. ___JOBLESS BENEFITSThe CARES Act created a $600 per-week bonus COVID-19 unemployment benefit that sustained household incomes and consumer demand during the springtime shutdowns. House Democrats support the idea, but it is unpopular with many Senate Republicans and was left out of a scaled-back Senate GOP plan. ___LIABILITY SHIELDBusinesses reopening during the pandemic have for months been seeking a shield against lawsuits claiming negligence for COVID-19 outbreaks.

The duo were the architects of the $1.8 trillion CARES Act, the landmark relief bill passed in March. Here are the top issues for the end-stage COVID-19 relief talks. ___JOBLESS BENEFITSThe CARES Act created a $600 per-week bonus COVID-19 unemployment benefit that sustained household incomes and consumer demand during the springtime shutdowns. House Democrats support the idea, but it is unpopular with many Senate Republicans and was left out of a scaled-back Senate GOP plan. ___LIABILITY SHIELDBusinesses reopening during the pandemic have for months been seeking a shield against lawsuits claiming negligence for COVID-19 outbreaks.

HOUSTON – The Houston City Council on Wednesday approved a relief fund that will provide thousands of residents who are struggling financially during the coronavirus pandemic with a one-time $1,200 payment that can be used for rent, food or other needs. On Tuesday, officials in Albuquerque, New Mexico, announced residents could apply for $2,000 grants for families dealing with financial hardships. Many Houston residents have been struggling with food insecurity, lost jobs and worries about being evicted during the pandemic. Days before Thanksgiving, Houston held a mass food giveaway in which vehicles lined up for hours before the event started. The Houston City Council on Wednesday also approved $10 million in additional funding for a program to help small businesses with payroll and other expenses.

(AP Photo/Susan Walsh, Pool)WASHINGTON – Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is defending his decision to close down a number of emergency Federal Reserve loan programs at a time when coronavirus cases are surging. Mnuchin argued that the programs he decided not to extend into next year were being lightly utilized. He said the $455 billion allocated for those Fed loan programs could be better used elsewhere if Congress moved the funds into relief programs for small businesses and unemployed workers. “You appear to be trying to sabotage our economy on the way out the door,” Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, told Mnuchin. The Treasury and the Fed announced on Monday that four other lending programs the Fed has been using would be extended through March.

Faulting inaction in Washington, governors and state lawmakers are racing to get needed pandemic relief to small businesses, the unemployed, renters and others affected by the widening coronavirus outbreak. Funded through the CARES Act, it offered grants to small businesses, bars and restaurants, low-income renters, arts groups, and colleges and universities. “It’s shameful that they have not acted in Congress, especially (Senate Majority Leader Mitch) McConnell and the Republican Senate, to throw a lifeline to small businesses,” he said. Republicans have proposed a $300 million aid package to small businesses and nonprofits, but the legislation is stalled. “This isn’t like all the blue states are hurting and all the red states are humming along.

The Fed announced no new actions after its latest policy meeting but left the door open to provide further assistance in the coming months. The Fed's policy statement, issued after a two-day meeting, made no mention of lawmakers' failure to act. The Fed’s latest policy meeting coincided with an anxiety-ridden election week and an escalation of the virus across the country. “All of us have a role to play, to keep appropriate social distance and to wear masks in public.”The central bank's policy statement Thursday was approved on a 10-0 vote. Another dissenter in September, Neel Kashkari, head of the Minneapolis Fed, was absent, with his alternate, Mary Daly of the San Francisco Fed, approving the statement.

(Drew Angerer/Pool via AP)WASHINGTON – Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned Tuesday that a tentative recovery from the pandemic recession could falter unless the federal government supplies additional economic support. Yet hours after Powell's remarks, President Donald Trump announced that he was cutting off talks with Democrats over a new economic aid package until after the November elections. But the U.S. economy still faces threats, and without further aid, those downward trends could still derail the recovery, Powell said. In recent months, in speeches and in testimony to Congress, Powell has repeatedly urged lawmakers to enact an additional economic aid package. “Still, since it appears that many will undergo extended periods of unemployment, there is likely to be a need for further support,” Powell said.

Mnuchin agreed that business loans and enhanced unemployment support would be good priorities for Congress to back in any new package. Pressed to state what the top priorities should be, Powell cited providing more support through the popular Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses and boosting unemployment benefits. The original relief package provided a $600-a-week federal unemployment benefit, on top of whatever jobless aid a state provides. Powell repeated his view that providing more support was essential to keep the economy on a sustained upturn. Mnuchin was pressed by some senators to further simplify government forms that businesses need to provide to qualify for having their Paycheck Protection Program loans forgiven.

SAN ANTONIO – If you lost your source of income or had reduced income because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, making payments on your federal student loans may be nearly impossible. The CARES Act gives federal student loan borrowers some relief when it comes to making payments, and most recently, President Donald Trump extended the Sept. 30 end date of the program to Dec. 31. The Federal Trade Commission says if you have qualifying federal student loans, you are not obligated to make a payment until after Dec. 31. The FTC says you don’t need to do anything to enroll in this relief program, but you must make sure your federal student loans are included. Contact your federal loan servicer or visit studentaid.gov to find out if your loans are included.

A man from Illinois is suing President Donald Trump for denying stimulus payments to American citizens who are married to immigrants who don’t have social security numbers, Fox 10 reports. The plaintiff, named in the class-action lawsuit under the alias “John Doe,” and his spouse reportedly file their tax returns jointly. The couple, who have two children who are also American citizens, would have received $3,400, as long as both their child are younger than 17-years-old. According to Fox 10, the suit claims that the plaintiff and other Americans married to immigrants have been discriminated against. For married couples who file jointly, their income must be less than $99,000.

SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio International Airport will receive millions of dollars in federal aid as the coronavirus pandemic has nearly paralyzed the travel industry. The airport will receive $39,708,109 under the CARES Act that was passed in late March, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Kelly Field will receive $20,000 and the Stinson Municipal Airport will receive $30,000. View a list of Texas airports receiving funding on an interactive map, along with funding for all U.S. airports on FAA’s website. COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new virus, stands for coronavirus disease 2019.