The United States Department of the Treasury on Monday issued a new guidance regarding the use of federal coronavirus assistance. The guidance clarifies that federal Covid-19 aid can be used to forgo taxing forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans and pandemic unemployment payments at the state level — a change that Senate Republicans have sought since the beginning of session. The state government’s portion of the federal stimulus money will be $2.833 billion — about $200 million more than originally estimated.

Senate Tax Committee Chairwoman Carla Nelson (R-Rochester) issued the following statement:

“Now that the federal government has issued its guidance on federal stimulus funds, there is no reason to delay passing PPP and unemployment insurance tax relief. I hope the governor and House of Representatives will act with urgency and get this done right away.

“As chair of the Senate Tax Committee, I am glad we passed this important tax relief two months ago today. There is simply no reason why we should ask folks to pay taxes on this emergency assistance. Businesses relied on these loans to keep people employed during the worst of the pandemic, and many of them are still struggling. Individuals were forced off the job through no fault of their own, and they depended on the extra unemployment to help make ends meet. Providing this protection is one of the most important things we can do to make their lives easier this tax season and help them recover from the economic pandemic.”