WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Americans should start receiving direct payments from the U.S. government in mid-April to help cope with the coronavirus pandemic, but some may not get the money until mid-September, according to a congressional committee.
FILE PHOTO: A person in a mask walks on a nearly empty street in the coronavirus outbreak near the Treasury Department in Washington, U.S. March 30, 2020. Picture taken March 30, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
The Trump administration is expected to distribute 60 million payments of up to $1,200 per individual using bank deposit information from 2018 and 2019 federal income tax filings during the week of April 13, according to a memo from Democrats on the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee.
It will not begin to send out paper checks to those who do not have bank deposit information on file until about 21 days later, around May 4, according to the memo, which was reviewed by Reuters.
The Internal Revenue Service expects to issue about 5 million checks per week, meaning some Americans may wait 20 weeks, the memo said. Under that schedule, the last checks would arrive around Sept. 21.
That could blunt the effectiveness of the direct payments, which economists call one of the quickest and most effective ways to stimulate the economy.
The memo said the checks will be issued in “reverse adjusted gross income order,” starting with people with the lowest income.
IRS officials were not immediately available for comment. But the House memo stressed that “this timeline is subject to change.”
The payments are part of a $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump last week.
The government is providing direct payments of up to $1,200 to people earning up to $75,000 a year, with additional payments of $500 per child. Payments phase out for those earning more than $75,000. Those earning more than $99,000 are not eligible.
The Trump administration said this week that people who did not file tax returns in recent years would have to fill out a simplified form to get a payment. Democrats objected, saying this would penalize millions who do not file returns, such as senior citizens and disabled people who rely on the Social Security system for income.
Late on Wednesday, the Treasury and IRS announced that Social Security beneficiaries would not have to fill out additional paperwork. Others who did not file a tax return will need to file a simplified form to get the money.
The IRS expects to create an online portal by late April or early May through which taxpayers can learn the status of their payment and update direct deposit information, the memo said.
Reporting by David Morgan; editing by Andy Sullivan, Chizu Nomiyama, Leslie Adler and David Gregorio