On The Money: Congressional leaders to meet on government funding, COVID relief | Small businesses say worst of pandemic yet to come | Fed joins global network to fight climate change

Happy Tuesday and welcome back to On The Money. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

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THE BIG DEAL—Congressional leaders to meet on government funding, coronavirus relief as deadline looms: Top congressional leaders are meeting on Tuesday as they try to finalize a mammoth government funding bill and work out an agreement on coronavirus relief.

Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiCongress closes in on COVID-19 relief, funding deal Bipartisan senators urge surprise billing deal’s inclusion in year-end package Democratic leaders under pressure to agree to slimmed-down COVID-19 relief deal MORE (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellCongress closes in on COVID-19 relief, funding deal Bipartisan senators urge surprise billing deal’s inclusion in year-end package Democratic leaders under pressure to agree to slimmed-down COVID-19 relief deal MORE (R-Ky.), Senate Minority Leader Charles SchumerChuck SchumerBipartisan senators urge surprise billing deal’s inclusion in year-end package Progressives ramp up calls for increased unemployment insurance, direct payments Lawmakers grapple with implementing COVID-19 vaccine on Capitol Hill MORE (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthyKevin Owen McCarthyCongress closes in on COVID-19 relief, funding deal Democratic leaders under pressure to agree to slimmed-down COVID-19 relief deal Progressives ramp up calls for increased unemployment insurance, direct payments MORE (R-Calif.) met at 4 p.m. and are expected to meet again at 7:30 p.m.

The meeting comes as appropriators are hoping to file text of an agreement on an omnibus funding bill, which would keep the government open until Oct. 1, on Tuesday, setting up votes in the House as soon as Wednesday.
Congress has until Friday night to pass another funding bill or the government will shut down.
As of Monday night there were still two sticking points for a funding deal: A push to include an agreement on surprise medical billing and wage requirements on public works deals.

The Hill’s Jordain Carney brings us up to speed here.

LEADING THE DAY

Small businesses say worst of pandemic yet to come: survey: A significant majority of small businesses say they think that the worst of the pandemic is yet to come, according to a survey by the Chamber of Commerce and MetLife.

According to the survey, 62 percent of small business owners said they thought more difficult times were ahead, expressing concerns about the economy, the fate of their businesses, and their mental health.
The survey found that minority business owners reported they were more concerned, with 41 percent expressing high levels of concern about the pandemic’s effect on their business, as compared to 31 percent of nonminority owners.
Seventy-four percent of the small business respondents said that they would need more federal relief to succeed in 2021.

“The impact of coronavirus continues to take a devastating toll on America’s small businesses,” said Neil Bradley, executive vice president and chief policy officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “In fact, half of them say they can operate for a year or less before closing permanently.” The Hill’s Niv Elis has more here.

Fed joins global network to fight climate change through financial system: The Federal Reserve Board announced Tuesday that it has joined an international network of central banks and regulators devoted to fighting climate change through the global financial system.

The Fed is now a member of the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for Greening the Financial System (NGFS), the bank announced Tuesday. The Fed board approved the decision to join the NGFS by a 6-0 vote on Dec. 7.

“As we develop our understanding of how best to assess the impact of climate change on the financial system, we look forward to continuing and deepening our discussions with our NGFS colleagues from around the world,” said Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, a Republican first appointed to the Fed by former President Obama and elevated to chairman by President TrumpDonald TrumpTop Trump aide Derek Lyons to leave White House this month Judge rules Trump Org must turn over documents to NY AG as part of probe Longtime GOP strategist Steve Schmidt announces he’s registering Democrat MORE.

The background:

The Fed’s formal admission to the NGFS was widely anticipated after Powell and other Fed officials said the bank was seeking to join the group.
Fed officials began participating in NGFS conferences and activities more than a year ago but had not formally joined the network.
Financial sector critics and environmentalists have long called on banks and regulators to take a more aggressive role in fighting climate change and forcing the financial sector to reckon with the risks it can pose to their operations.

I have more on the Fed’s move and what it means for financial regulation here.

GOOD TO KNOW

Sens. Bernie SandersBernie SandersProgressives rally around Turner’s House bid Democratic leaders under pressure to agree to slimmed-down COVID-19 relief deal Progressives ramp up calls for increased unemployment insurance, direct payments MORE (I-Vt.) and Josh HawleyJoshua (Josh) David HawleyProgressives ramp up calls for increased unemployment insurance, direct payments On The Money: Congressional leaders to meet on government funding, COVID relief | Small businesses say worst of pandemic yet to come | Fed joins global network to fight climate change McConnell urges GOP senators not to object to Electoral College vote MORE (R-Mo.) are emerging as Congress’s latest odd couple as they push for a second round of stimulus checks.
Billionaire philanthropist Warren Buffett and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon on Tuesday urged Congress to extend the Paycheck Protection Program.
Big tech companies are facing further break-up threats as part of sweeping new compliance rules regarding content and competition regulation unveiled by the European Commission on Tuesday.
Postal Service employees across the nation are reporting backlogs in shipments due to an overwhelming surge of e-commerce packages.

ODDS AND ENDS

The Trump administration on Tuesday finalized its rollback of standards for showerheads following a string of public complaints from the president about low-flow fixtures designed to save water.