by Bethany Blankley
A second round of stimulus checks, this time in the amount of $600, is being sent out this week, the U.S. Treasury Department said Wednesday.
Referred to as economic impact payments, the $600 check individuals will receive is part of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, a bill President Donald Trump signed Sunday.
“These payments may begin to arrive in some accounts by direct deposit as early as tonight and will continue into next week,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin tweeted.
The Treasury Department will begin to mail paper checks Dec. 30, it said in a statement.
“This second round of payments will provide critical economic support to those who, through no fault of their own, have been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,” the department said.
In March, qualifying individuals received $1,200 payments.
Eligible individuals do not need to take any action to receive the second payment, the Internal Revenue Service said.
“Anyone who received the first round of payments earlier this year but doesn’t receive a payment via direct deposit will generally receive a check or, in some instances, a debit card,” the IRS said.
Some “may see the direct deposit payments as pending or as provisional payments in their accounts before the official payment date of Jan. 4, 2021.”
Eligible individuals with incomes of $75,000 or less will receive a payment of up to $600 and eligible joint filing spouses with incomes of up to $150,000 will receive $1,200. Eligible parents with children age 17 or younger will receive up to $600 per minor.
“We are working swiftly to distribute this second round of payments as quickly as possible,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said. “This work continues throughout the holidays and into the new year as we prepare for the upcoming filing season.”
President Donald Trump continues to push for $2,000 stimulus checks to be distributed to every American, which the Republicans in Congress have rejected.
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Bethany Blankley is a contributor to The Center Square.
Photo “Stimulus Check” by Alpha Bonding. CC BY-SA 2.0.
