The long-awaited third stimulus checks — for up to $1,400 — are finally headed to Americans’ bank accounts and mailboxes, after President Joe Biden last week signed his $1.9 trillion COVID relief package into law. If you need more money for bills and to pay down debt, it’s on the way.
And will that be the end? No more direct payments?
Several members of Congress are arguing for a fourth stimulus check and even more after that, because they point out that many Americans are still struggling more than a year into the pandemic.
But the Biden aid bill won passage with every Republican lawmaker voting no, and it cleared the Senate in a 51-50 squeaker, with Vice President Kamala casting a tiebreaker vote. So is it realistic to hope the president will support further relief payments, and Congress will approve them? Here’s a closer look.
Democrats say families need more stimulus checks
Fifty Democratic U.S. representatives, including Minnesota’s Ilhan Omar and New York’s Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have signed a letter pressing the Biden administration to issue recurring stimulus checks to help Americans cover essential needs for the duration of the pandemic.
“One more check is not enough during this public health and economic crisis,” the letter says. It doesn’t include a suggested dollar amount for the regular payments, but Rep. Omar tweeted in January that she’d like to see the government provide $2,000 per month to carry people through the crisis.
Ten Senate Democrats have signed a similar letter. “This crisis is far from over, and families deserve certainty that they can put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads,” the senators say.
Last year’s very first, $1,200 stimulus checks were primarily spent on groceries, rent and other basic needs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The cash also was used for saving and investing, and for other expenses. Some consumers likely went shopping for affordable life insurance, because demand for those policies has surged amid the pandemic.
Friends and foes of recurring checks
Though the White House hasn’t given a response to the letters, the idea of monthly stimulus checks might attract some fans in high places.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell (pictured) last month made a good case for the government to spend more on COVID relief. He testified to Congress that the economy is “highly uncertain,” and he indicated that stimulus checks and other aid weren’t likely to drive up inflation.
CEOs of retail chains also might like to see more government cash going to consumers. Retail sales surged in January after Round 2 of the checks went out, and Macy’s has said it’s expecting a big sales boost in the coming months from the third round.
But a plan for future, recurring checks would have no shortage of detractors. Republicans opposed the third checks as expensive and unnecessary, and moderate Democrats may feel that way about recurring payments. They demanded changes for the third round, to “target” the stimulus checks toward the neediest Americans.
A big barrier to further stimulus checks
Beyond the likely opposition, there’s a more complicated reason you shouldn’t get your hopes too high for more cash from Uncle Sam.
Democrats pushed the Biden stimulus bill through Congress using an arcane budget process that allowed them to pass the legislation with simple majorities. Typically, bills need a 60-vote supermajority to make it through the Senate, because of what’s called the filibuster rule.
Biden and the Democrats can use the streamlined, go-it-alone approach just one more time in 2020, and they’d have to wait until the next fiscal year starts on Oct. 1 to do that.
With other priorities on his mind including climate change, health care and infrastructure, the president probably won’t want to use up his remaining wild card to dole out more stimulus checks.
What if you think you’ll need more relief?
If you’re anxiously waiting for your third stimulus check to arrive and are already worrying about getting by later in the year, you have some options to build more cash into your budget:
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Lose the interest. Have you been leaning hard on your credit cards through the pandemic, and racking up costly interest? Make your debt more manageable — and pay it off more quickly — by folding your balances into a lower-interest debt consolidation loan.
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Make savings your policy. Car insurance companies have been doling out discounts for drivers who have been using their cars less because of COVID. If yours won’t offer savings, shop around for a better deal. And while you’re at it, comparing rates on homeowners insurance could save you hundreds of dollars a year.
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Refinance your mortgage (if you’ve got one) and slash your payments. Mortgage rates remain historically low, and refinancing your existing home loan could reap big savings. The mortgage technology and data provider Black Knight reported in early March that 12.9 million mortgage holders were still sitting on loans worth refinancing.
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Trim your budget and “make your own” stimulus check. Using a few creative ways to cut back, you might come up with the equivalent of a monthly stimulus check. Do you need a big data plan if you’re just at home on Wi-Fi all day? Call up your cellphone provider and switch to a cheaper option. Have a hobby or special talent? Turn it into a side hustle to bring in extra income. And, download a free browser extension that will automatically scour for better prices and coupons whenever you shop online.
