RELIEF

House Votes to Extend September 11th Victim Compensation Fund

Comedian Jon Stewart has been outspoken in pushing Congress to give more money to the fund.

The House voted to renew the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund on Friday in a 402-12 vote, The Wall Street Journal reports. The bill would pay for all “current and future” medical claims of first responders and volunteers through 2090, and also compensates attack survivors and those who lived near the sites in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. According to the Congressional Budget Office, fully funding the program will cost about $10.2 billion. The legislation will now go to the Senate for a final vote. “It is time to give them the peace of mind they deserve and pass this bill once and for all,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) told the Journal.

Earlier this year, the fund’s administrator notified beneficiaries that money for pending and future claims would be reduced if Congress did not provide more funding. At a House hearing last month, comedian Jon Stewart received a standing ovation after speaking to representatives about the fund.