Americans React to Proposed Covid Stimulus Relief Package Ahead of Vote

The economic stimulus measure nearing approval in the U.S. Congress includes a second round of direct stimulus payments to households -- an acknowledgment that families need another injection of cash to get through the latest surge in virus cases and lockdowns.

This time, lawmakers are set to approve $600 checks for most adults and $600 for each of their children. The hope is that the payments, along with additional money for small businesses, jobless individuals and more nutrition benefits, can help bolster households and combat rising poverty rates.

If you earn less than $75,000, or you and your spouse collectively make less than $150,000, you’ll get $600 for each of you plus $600 for each dependent child. Those payment amounts are reduced by $5 for every $100 you earn above the income threshold, which means those earning more than $87,000 as an individual or $174,000 as a couple get nothing.

Also receiving the payments: seniors whose only income is from Social Security, railroad retirees and veterans who rely on disability payments. If the IRS issues more than you are supposed to receive, you do not have to pay the excess amount back. The payments are not allowed to be reclaimed to pay for back federal or state debts, and banks are forbidden from garnishing the payments.

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