Second Stimulus Check: House of Representatives Returns From Monthlong Recess

On Monday, the House of Representatives will reconvene following a monthlong recess. Their return to Capitol Hill will come just a week after members of the Senate reconvened, meaning that both chambers of Congress will officially be back in session as numerous pressing topics, including additional stimulus relief, are brought forth.

The House's return will be met with a busy schedule as members attempt to tackle a number of topics ahead of the upcoming presidential election in November. Among the long list of topics members are expected to discuss is the federal legalization of marijuana. The MORE Act, which seeks to remove marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances and expunge some marijuana-related criminal records, is scheduled for a vote during the week of Sept. 21. This bill is expected to pass the House, though it is unlikely to pass the Senate.

Other things the House will be discussing is the avoidance of a government shutdown. The government will shut down on Sept. 30 if Congress does not pass a series of annual bills that President Donald Trump will then need to sign. The House will also focus on the U.S. Postal Service. According to USA Today, "a congressional panel is set to hold a hearing Monday on Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's alleged conflicts of interest and how his leadership could "jeopardize the Postal Service and the mail-in voting process for the 2020 election.'"

Of course, among the most pressing issues will be a stimulus relief package. The House's return to Capitol Hill will come just days after a GOP-backed "skinny" proposal failed in the Senate last week and will come as negotiations regarding the July-introduced HEALS Act remain entirely collapsed. In May, the House made forward progress in bringing further relief to the American people when they passed the HEROES Act in a vote of 208-199. That bill, however, has been stalled in the Senate, where Senate Majority Leader has refused to bring it to the floor for a vote.

Despite both chambers of Congress now being in session, there is growing concern that progress will not be made in passing further relief until after the election. After the "skinny" proposal failed Thursday, a number of lawmakers voiced this concern, with McConnell telling reporters Friday that the outlook "doesn't look that good right now." While Sen. Richard Shelby said that "sometimes things look bleak and they revive, and so forth," he acknowledged that it appears there is little hope for any immediate relief.