Senate Votes 99-1 for Targeted Stimulus Checks
Senate Vote Indicates Strong Bipartisan Support for Targeted COVID-19 Stimulus Checks
A Senate vote on Thursday indicated strong bipartisan support for more targeted stimulus checks in the next COVID-19 relief package.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, proposed an amendment that called for "targeting" checks and making sure that "upper-income taxpayers are not eligible."
The Senate voted 99-1 in support of the amendment. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., was the only person to vote against it.
Senate Democrats split on who should receive $1,400 checks
Senate Democrats are divided on who should get the next round of stimulus payments, setting up a dispute as they try to approve $1,400 checks in the next Covid-19 relief package.
The most recent round of stimulus checks were cut off for people making more than $99,000 a year, or couples that made above $198,000. President Joe Biden recommended the same threshold in his $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package.
But some Democrats want to see that income cap lowered.
Fewer people may qualify for the $1,400 stimulus payments. Here’s why
After promising another round of stimulus payments worth $1,400 to many Americans, President Joe Biden has reportedly signaled that he is open to restricting the number of people who would receive them, based on their income.
Democrats are reportedly considering sending the $1,400 payments to individuals earning up to $50,000, and $2,800 to married couples earning up to $100,000 (plus $1,400 per child), according to The Washington Post. That’s a decrease from the first and second round of checks, which started phasing out at $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples.