Checks in time for NYE
Mnuchin vows quick stimulus payout
The US government is prepared to deploy $600 COVID-19 stimulus checks as soon as President Trump signs the $2.3 trillion Christmasweek pandemic relief bill, which Congress passed late Monday night.
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said earlier Monday that authorities will process the payments — which generally are direct-deposited into bank accounts — before the new year.
“The good news is this is a very, very fast way of getting money into the economy. Let me emphasize: People are going to see this money at the beginning of next week,” Mnuchin said on CNBC.
The legislation authorizes $600 stimulus checks for most Americans and an extra $600 payment per dependent child.
As with the initial round of stimulus checks in March, the amounts are means-linked. People who earn more than $75,000 per year will receive less money and earners over $95,000 will get nothing unless they have kids.
Married couples filing jointly are eligible for $1,200 if they earn less than $150,000. If they earn more than $180,000 as a couple, they will receive stimulus money only if they have children.
The nearly 5,600-page bill was passed first by the House and then by the Senate, and was awaiting Trump’s all-but-certain signature following eight months of partisan gridlock.
The bill contains a $300 weekly unemployment-insurance supplement and prevents an estimated 12 million people from losing unemployment benefits on Dec. 26.
The deal also authorizes $284.4 billion in Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans for small businesses as local officials reimpose COVID safety restrictions.
It contains $82 billion for schools and colleges, $40 billion for vaccine distribution and virus testing, $25 billion in rental assistance and $15 billion for live entertainment venues.
Party leaders said it was a good deal. In an interview with The Post, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) touted the bill’s $54 billion for New York state, including $4 billion for the struggling MTA.
“It’s not enough but it deals with the emergency,” he said.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told Fox News, “It’s directly targeted at exactly what the country needs right now.”
The package was brokered after a long-running impasse. Republicans accepted defeat on adding business liability protections and Democrats threw in the towel on massive aid for state and local governments.
Meanwhile, some legislators said they were concerned about not getting a meaningful opportunity to review the bill.
Rep. Alexandria OcasioCortez (D-NY) tweeted, “Members of Congress need to see & read the bills we are expected to vote on. I know it’s ‘controversial’ & I get in trouble for sharing things like this, but the people of this country deserve to know.”