https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/600-stimulus-check-qualifications-income-limit-age-and-requirement-changes/

87K and 174K

I didn’t get the first check and don’t expect to get this one. My kids could have applied for both (there was a way for college students to do so) but we didn’t. I don’t need the money so don’t want to get it. I’d just donate it away.

I agree. Things are so concentrated bad in certain industries and demographics, and so perfectly fine in many others, that they need to focus financial help on the small businesses that are about to fail, the people who are going to food banks for the first time in their lives, the renters who haven’t been able to pay and the small landlords who haven’t been paid in six months. Throwing money at people who don’t need it and don’t have a whole lot of propensity or even opportunity to spend it is a waste. I get that some think it’s “fairer” if everyone gets the money, but is it so hard to understand that some people have been hammered much worse by the pandemic than everyone else - like, the government literally shut down their business or their job, through no fault of their own? When a natural disaster brings aid to one area, people unaffected by the flood or earthquake or wildfire shouldn’t complain that they’re not getting aid. I’m not sitting here griping that I’m not getting money, I’m thankful that I don’t need it and hoping that those who do get enough to keep them housed and fed.

How human of you.
Our money hit the bank this morning. It's going to be distributed to a few local places later this week.

Mine hit Saturday early morning, post bank processing, but with a Jan 4 date.

The $600 was reflected in my balance immediately but the transaction is "pending" until tonight's processing. Not sure what would have happened had I dipped into it early.

If you wrote a check on it, without overdraft coverage, it would bounce. :)

Have to think so.

We had ours show up today, so we'll roll it over onto a loan balance we need to pay off before my wife can retire.

Agreed. A good small-business program would be helpful.

Unfortunately, everyone did not get money from this or previous "stimulus" bills...so less a true stimulus bill and more a welfare/wealth redistribution program. There is no consideration of need or deservedness. A person's 2019 income level may well not reflect their pandemic-impacted 2020 income or their degree of need (which may well vary by area and cost of living).

The governments that shut down the businesses should be the ones paying to make them whole, not other parts of the country that made better choices. It is less a natural disaster, but one of mismanagement. Rewarding poor government results in more of it. Similarly, rewarding unemployment seems to make some hesitate to return to work at less or equal pay.

There are already other income-based welfare programs in place (besides this one)..so those should have just been tweaked slightly vice a mass giveaway. Unemployment should be extended to those seeking work but unable to find any (but the amount should not be increased to make it more lucrative than work).

[QUOTE=fintstone;11165899]

Unfortunately, everyone did not get money from this or previous "stimulus" bills...so less a true stimulus bill and more a welfare/wealth redistribution program.


I have seen this posted a few times. Who and why are these that didn't get a previous stimulus check?
Were they over the allowable AGI?

This is what I see first blush from link below.

-AGI (lower levels second round)
-Over 17 but claimed as a dependent
-Families with non-citizen spouse (first round)
-Owe child support (first round)
-Resident aliens not married to US citizen
-Incarcerated (first round)
-Had income but did not file a 2019 return but were required to do so (not sure if you can claw it back by filing late and requesting - probably can)
-Not required to file a return for low or no income reasons. Eligible but requires extra steps

https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/600-stimulus-check-qualifications-and-rules-income-limit-age-citizenship-more/

^^^ that's the link that I posted in post #61
From that...I still don't understand why the blame for not receiving it.

Not sure if this should be a new thread, maybe it'd be a spinoff...

How would you have done the stimulus/pandemic response checks?

My idea, given things that already exist in the tech systems, etc.:

For people making under $200k in 2019 (arbitrary starting point):

Send an advance on 2020 tax refund of a much larger $ amount. Say $1k per $10k of income in 2019, capped at $10k.

Then when 2020 taxes are filed give a credit indexed to to the gap in income between 2019 and 2020.

For instance:
2019 income of $100k.
$10k check
2020 income of $50k
$5k tax credit

This would accomplish a few things.
Getting cash into the economy ASAP
Retuning money that was unneeded to the treasury
Systems already mostly in place
IRS as the collection agency



We got a deposit, of which we didn't really need. Lost some wages over the year due to some hour cuts, but those were mostly made up by state + fed partial unemployment.

Would have been much better to properly allocate that money to someone that legitimately can't pay their bills.


This might have also been able to prune down the PPP. I know a couple people that had their business saved because of it, but a few more that didn't have any business impact and basically just banked a bunch of $$. Not efficient.

Mine showed up in the bank this morning. Didn't need it.
Already spent - we invested via a trusted ministry (vetted and have open books) in a well in Africa so that the people in a remote village will have clean drinking water. None of the money they collect goes to "overhead" or "operating costs". 100% goes to the wells they dig.

If you don't need the money (and I suspect most Pelicans really don't need the money) then why not give it to a charity of your choice? 501c-3 non-profit organizations are having a hard time. People pucker up and don't give for fear of the future.

^As with the last time I am not getting anything, which is fine. I did however get a $125 rebate via Discount Tire and Goodyear when I put new tires on my truck. I promptly gave the same amount to our local baseball club scholarship fund for lower income families so their kids could play.

I’d have limited the PPP to small and medium biz, with the bulk set aside for the smallest companies, and limited total unemployment insurance to around $1.5K/mo.

The reality is that most people who lost their jobs were in sectors that are pretty low-paying - restaurants, hotels, bars, small retail stores. I’ll bet their average income was under $30K/yr. UE should be lower than regular income, so $1.5K/mo = $18K/yr in UE would have been about right. I also think rent and mortgage forbearance was a good idea, but corresponding assistance to small landlords was also needed.

I’m not really that critical of the initial PPP and UE/PUA programs. It was an emergency, things don’t get done perfectly in emergencies, you do the best you can and learn what needs to be done better for the second round. The thing I’m frustrated about is the long delay and inadequate scope of the second round.

I totally support the idea of donating stimulus payments you don’t need. You get the tax deduction so you still benefit, and folks who need it so much more get help.

Received notification of deposit over the weekend
Confirmed to have hit our account today.

Checks sent off to local food pantry this morning as well as a local ministry that helps local people.

We put some into our kids’ education funds also.

I have been very fortunate this last year, and would like to make a difference with some of those who have not been so fortunate.

Just need to keep it all in perspective - as much as possible, anyway.

You can put my wife and I on that list of people who didn't get either check.

^^^ Why not?
Over the AGI limit?