Fed stimulus checks hitting accounts now
Clark County banks say bulk of deposits to arrive starting Wednesday.
Some Clark County residents saw another round of federal relief money hit their bank accounts over the weekend and many more are expected to receive those stimulus payments by the end of this week.
President Joe Biden signed Friday the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion stimu
lus package that authorizes the payments of $1,400 for each eligible person plus $1,400 for each dependent.
It is the third round of stimulus payments sent directly to residents, since the coronavirus pandemic was declared last year.
Customers of Wright-Patt Credit Union started receiving those payments on Friday as that money was
deposited into their accounts. As of Monday afternoon, the credit union had received approximately 87,000 stimulus payments.
That money was originally post marked by the federal government to be released by the middle of this week, however WrightPatt, which has customers in Clark County as well as across the greater Dayton area, was able to release them sooner, according to a bank spokesperson.
“The government post dates the checks, because there are processes in placefinancial institutions go through before releasing funds. We worked hard to release them sooner, because it also shows as pending on members’ online banking (accounts),” said Tracy Szarzi-Fors, WrightPatt’s vice president of marketing and business development.
“That has confused our members in the past, so we wanted to make it easier for them to have access to th e ir f unds
(versus) wondering why it was not released. This has been appreciated,” she added in an email.
However, other banks plan to see those stimulus payments in their customers accounts by Wednesday or Thursday.
PNC Bank said most of its customers, who have direct deposit set up with the IRS, can expect to see their payments begin to arrive on Wednesday.
Chase bank also said it expects electronic stimulus payments will be available in eligible accounts as soon as Wednesday.
Park National, which serves customers in Clark County, is expecting to have those payments to customers as soon as Thursday, according to its president John Brown.
He said the bulk of those early deposits will be received by the bank on Thursday, and some customers can expect to see that money in their accounts on the same day.
Brown said that each round of stimulus payments has generated a lot of activity for the bank as customers checked if they received stimulus money as well as use it.
The first batch of payments will be via direct deposit, but checks and debit cards with people’s stimulus money will be mailed out in the coming weeks.
As with the first and second round of payments, the checks will be reduced or eliminated for people with an income above a certain amount.
However, for those who are eligible the latest round of stimulus payments will add to payments of $1,200 distributed last year and $600 per person earlier this year.
Recent studies show that many Ohioans used some of those economic impact payments to go towards paying off debt or to add to their savings.
An informal survey by the News-Sun asking readers how they will spend their third round of stimulus checks showed that some plan to use that money to pay bills, put into savings accounts and purchase needed equipment as well as give it to others in need.
Morgan Terry of Springfield
Twp. received two stimulus payments and expects to receive a third. Terry told the News-Sun that previous stimulus payments went to pay off bills as well as pay for car repairs. The latest payment is expected to go towards savings.
Terry said the stimulus payments have been a blessing but added that those who are not qualified have been impacted by the pandemic as well.
“Those that haven’t qualified due to being above the threshold in regards to income have been severely impacted as well and still have bills to pay and families to provide for. They are also making significantly less than past years,” Terry said.
“No one could have predicted the pandemic, including those above the income threshold. They are just as impacted. I believe everyone should qualify. The country is so far into debt as it is, so the government should help everyone out, regardless of income,” Terry added.
Contact this reporter at 937701-2336 or email hasan. karim@coxinc.com.