Despite evidence the economy is coming back from the pandemic, demand for a fourth stimulus check isn’t going away.
More Americans are throwing their support behind a plan to provide every adult in the U.S. with an immediate $2,000 payment followed by regular checks for as long as the crisis endures. Dozens of Democrats in Congress back similar proposals, to assist people who are still struggling to pay rent, buy food and reduce their debt.
Lawmakers who want more stimulus checks see an opportunity to add them to an upcoming spending bill — which could mean at least one more payment this year.
But there’s likely to be intense pushback against any plan that includes new checks, particularly because millions of families are about to receive $1,500 or more in additional stimulus money through the end of 2021.
More than 2.5 million petition for fourth check
Many Americans are eager for a fourth stimulus check. Search traffic for the term “fourth stimulus check” remains high, according to Google Trends, and now close to 2.57 million people have signed an online petition calling for more relief.
The goal of 3 million signatures comes closer each week for the petition, which asks Congress for “a $2,000 payment for adults and a $1,000 payment for kids immediately, and continuing regular checks for the duration of the crisis.”
The campaign was started by Stephanie Bonin, a restaurant owner in Denver. After losing income during the pandemic, Bonin says she and her employees are still straining to pay the bills and stay out of poverty.
“Supplying Americans with monthly support until they can get back on their feet can save our communities from financial ruin,” she writes.
Democrats push for additional payments
In census surveys, most people willing to given an answer have indicated they spent their most recent, third stimulus check on basic needs including food, rent, mortgage payments and utilities.
Though some used the cash to invest in the white-hot stock market, others bought nonessential but necessary goods like clothing — and, possibly, affordable life insurance. Demand for those policies has soared during the pandemic.
Democrats have been calling for stimulus payments that would last the entirety of the pandemic since before the last COVID-19 aid bill was passed in March.
“The American people are counting on us to deliver transformative change, and we need to meet the moment by delivering monthly payments of $2,000,” Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar said in January, when she wrote President Joe Biden a letter that also was signed by dozens of other lawmakers.
How a fourth stimulus check can happen
More than 20 Democratic senators later signed a similar letter. Most recently, seven members of the influential House Ways and Means Committee wrote to urge Biden to include direct payments in his proposed $1.8 trillion “American Families Plan,” which he unveiled in late April.
The Ways and Means members said the last $1,400 check was not enough to get households through the year. A fourth and fifth stimulus check, the signers argued, could keep an additional 12 million people out of poverty.
The families plan includes new funding for child care, education and health care. The president has signaled he’d be willing to try to push it through Congress using an arcane process (called budget reconciliation) that would allow passage with only support from Democrats.
The same fast-tracking was used in March to pass the last stimulus check and the rest of Biden’s COVID rescue package, which faced universal opposition from Republicans. Pulling out the maneuver again, for the families legislation, might allow at least one additional relief payment to be tossed into the bill.
Factors working against another stimulus check
Some of Congress’ more conservative Democrats had qualms with the third stimulus check and may be even more leery about a fourth. To win over moderate Senate Democrats, eligibility for the last direct payments had to be “targeted” away from higher earners.
One reason the moderates can be counted on to question whether an additional stimulus check is necessary is that some 36 million American families are expected to start receiving monthly relief payments this week.
Eligible households will get up to $250 for every child ages 6 to 17, and as much as $300 for each kid under 6, through December. The cash, being provided under a temporary expansion of the child tax credit, will be delivered on or around the 15th of every month.
Couples qualify if they earn $150,000 or less and have children 17 and under. The same goes for single parents who make no more than $75,000.
If you need more stimulus now
Need more help now, and can’t wait for Washington to decide on a fourth stimulus check? Here are several ways to find some money on your own while you wait for an answer.
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Refinance your mortgage. If you’re a homeowner and haven’t refinanced your loan in the last year, you could be missing out on some game-changing savings. Now that the rate on 30-year fixed mortgages is under 3% again, mortgage data and technology provider Black Knight has said over 14 million homeowners can save an average $287 a month with a refi.
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Dominate your debt. Credit cards may have been a life-saver during the pandemic, but the high interest costs can really bang up your budget. You can pay off your debts more quickly and affordably by rolling your balances into a lower-interest debt consolidation loan.
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Reduce your insurance costs. Because so many people have been driving less in the wake of COVID, some car insurance companies are cutting premiums or offering their customers discounts. If your insurer isn’t one of them, it may be time to shop around for a better rate.
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Find creative ways to save. Cancel streaming services and any other monthly subscriptions you’re not using. Resist the urge to order dinner deliveries, plan out homecooked meals, and go to the grocery store with a list you’ll stick to. And, download a free browser add-on that will automatically hunt for better prices and coupons whenever you shop online.
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Turn your pocket change into profits. You don’t need another stimulus check to get in on today’s record-breaking stock market action. A popular app allows you to invest in a diversified portfolio by using nothing more than “spare change” from your everyday purchases.
