NEW $1,400 stimulus checks could be agreed this week and sent out “immediately.”
“There’s no time to waste,” Joe Biden said on Thursday while detailing his new $1.9trillion Covid relief plan.
* Read our US Politics live blog for the latest news on Joe Biden, Donald Trump and Wednesday’s inauguration
The new plan includes a third round of $1,400 stimulus checks, following last month’s $600 deposit.
Both Biden and outgoing President Trump said that they believed Americans should receive $2,000 checks.
Therefore, Biden has pledged to make up the sum in the form of a third check.
He said on Thursday that the checks would be “immediate.”
“We will finish the job of getting a total of $2,000 in cash relief to people who need it the most,” Biden said.
“The $600 already appropriated is simply not enough. You just have to choose between paying rent and putting food on the table.”
Democrats have said that the aid will be their first priority once Biden is in office.
“We will get right to work to turn President-elect Biden’s vision into legislation that will pass both chambers and be signed into law,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said.
The House is expected to start working on the plan this week, before Biden is sworn in on Wednesday and the Senate is seated on Friday.
However, not everyone will be eligible to receive Biden’s stimulus check.
Under the last two coronavirus stimulus plans, adults were given a check – with a bonus for up to three dependent children.
Adult dependents – like those in college, and some with disabilities – were not eligible for checks, however.
That would change with the new package, giving all adult dependents the check, according to Yahoo! Money.
Under the proposal, dependents would receive the same amount as adult individuals – $1,400.
There’s also income limits for who would be eligible.
In the last plan, Americans earning less than $75,000 got the payout.
Married couples earning a combined $150,000 and head of households earning up to $112,500 also got the full payout.
The stimulus payout phased out for those earning over the income threshold, however.
