There Is Still A Slight Chance Of Fourth Coronavirus Stimulus Check

June
30, 2021

3 min read

This story originally appeared on ValueWalk

People have been anxiously waiting for another round of stimulus checks, but so far, there hasn’t been any official talks on it. Moreover, considering the other stimulus packages that President Biden is working on, along with a better than expected economic recovery, another round of stimulus checks seems very unlikely. But, now there is a slight chance that lawmakers may win approval for a fourth coronavirus stimulus check as Congress nears its long Fourth of July recess.

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Is there any chance of another coronavirus stimulus check?

Congress is scheduled to go on recess on Thursday for the Fourth of July, and won’t return for two and a half weeks. Because of this, many Democrats are reportedly working to win approval for a beefed-up version of Biden’s “families plan.”

It is likely that they could use the same budget maneuver to get approval for the package that they used for the American Rescue Plan in March. The proponents of another round of stimulus checks see it as an opportunity to make it part of Biden’s “families plan.”

If Democrats go for the same trick to get approval for Biden’s package (without any help from Republicans) they will need the support of every Democrat. This gives Democrats, in favor of another stimulus check, an opportunity to put forward their demand in exchange for supporting Biden’s “families plan.”

Several Democrats are in favor of giving more stimulus checks to Americans, who are still struggling to pay for food, rent and utility bills. More than 80 members of Congress reportedly support at least one more round of stimulus checks, including seven members of the influential House Ways and Means Committee.

Those in favor of stimulus checks point to a recent study, which found that the stimulus payments offered much-needed relief. An analysis of the census data by the University of Michigan noted that the last two rounds of stimulus checks helped in reducing financial instability, food shortages and depression.

Clubbing stimulus checks with families plan

Last week, Biden announced that the White House and over 20 senators of a bipartisan group had reached a compromise on a $1.2 trillion infrastructure package. Biden also indicated that there could be another bill, which will include the original families plan and the items excluded from the infrastructure package because of the compromise.

If such is the case, it is very likely that Democrats would use the same process, which they used at the time of passing the American Rescue Plan, to get approval for this plan. This budget tactic would allow Democrats to pass the package with simple majorities in the House and Senate, i.e. without any support from Republicans.

However, getting every Democrat on board won’t be easy, especially when some of their more conservative members balked at the last round of relief payments. Meanwhile, much of the focus of lawmakers is on the expanded child tax credit, which is set to go out from next month.