Focus On What Goes On At Your Housenot The White House
Its hard not to worry as you watch billions and trillions of dollars fly out the window in Washington, D.C. And while those things matter, the truth is, you have ultimate control over your money and what choices are made in your house. You have the power to improve your money situation right nowtodaywithout having to rely on the government.
And it all starts with a budget. Because when you make a plan for your money, you’re more likely to make progress and hit your financial goalsstimulus check or not. So, go ahead and create your budget with EveryDollar today! Take control of your future and get the hope you need.
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Ramsey Solutions
Ramsey Solutions has been committed to helping people regain control of their money, build wealth, grow their leadership skills, and enhance their lives through personal development since 1992. Millions of people have used our financial advice through 22 books published by Ramsey Press, as well as two syndicated radio shows and 10 podcasts, which have over 17 million weekly listeners.Learn More.
Fourth Stimulus Check Amount
The fourth stimulus check amount depends on several factors. If passed, it would probably look similar to the previous checks, although that’s not guaranteed.
For reference, the first stimulus check amounted to as much as $1,200, while the second stimulus check brought $600 to eligible Americans. The third stimulus check, which the IRS is still in the process of distributing, is worth up to $1,400 per person, although the eligibility requirements are narrower.
All three checks gave the full amounts to taxpayers who made up to $75,000 a year, according to their most recent tax returns. Couples filing jointly got the full payment if they had a joint total income of $150,000 or less.
With the first two checks, those making up to $99,000 alone or $198,000 as a couple received prorated payments. With the third check, individuals who earned more than $80,000 per year or $160,000 per year as joint filers got nothing. Our guide to the stimulus check calculator can show you what your own eligibility looks like.
Stimulus Check Demands For Seniors Gains Voice
The Senior Citizens League stated that the seniors are facing stiff challenges in meeting their daily needs. The economy has started to bounce back, which has caused inflation. The resultant rises in prices have made life difficult for seniors. The estimated cost of living adjustment is expected to shoot up to 6%. TSCL is thus, quite rightly seeking a $1400 stimulus check to aid the older population.
When the country imposed a strict shutdown, people were clueless about their future. This was when the federal government came up with the idea of a stimulus check. Joe Biden announced a series of monetary assistance based on the eligibility of the residents. Most of the people benefitted largely from the initiative. The money received from the check was mostly used up to meet the essential needs of the households. However, after the initial three checks, no further announcements have been made. This has made the mass increasingly frustrated. Most of the families are still lagging in terms of rent, food supplies, etc. The federal government issued three sets of Stimulus Check. Checks worth $600, $1200 & $1400 were rolled out to the qualifying citizens. The third set of checks was issued recently by the IRS. The money was transferred directly to the bank accounts. However, people also had the choice to opt for paper checks.
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Apple Appears To Continue Growing Amid The Fears Of An Economic Recession In The Us
Even though Apple’s profit slipped during the past quarter, the world’s largest technology company is holding up better than many of its peers.
They had to deal with supply chain shortages and all kind of manufacturing headaches on top of inflation but the tech giant, but Apple beated the analysts projections, even after seeing a 10% decline in their profits from April to June, edging up a 2% in revenue.
What Gaos Work Shows
1. IRS can use data to tailor outreach efforts.
It was challenging for IRS and Treasury to get payments to some peopleespecially nonfilers, or those who are not required to file tax returns. These people were eligible for the payments for a couple of reasons:
- first, there was no earned income requirement, so Americans with no or very little income could receive economic relief and
- second, the payments were refundable tax credits, so eligible individuals can claim the full amount even if it exceeds what they owe in taxes.
In 2020, Treasury and IRS used other data to identify and reach out to around 9 million potentially eligible nonfilers. In May 2021, TIGTA identified potentially 10 million individuals eligible for payments, but IRS has no further plans to reach out to these individuals.
We recommended that Treasury and IRS use available data to develop an updated estimate of total eligible individuals which they could use to better tailor and redirect their ongoing outreach and communications efforts for similar tax credits.
2. Improved collaboration will also help outreach to underserved communities.
We recommended that Treasury and IRS focus on improving interagency collaboration and use data to assess the effectiveness of their efforts to educate more people about refundable tax credits and eligibility requirements.
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How Will Child Support Arrears And Payments Be Impacted With Stimulus Check
I seem to be getting a lot of comments on this question around child support. The IRS has confirmed that the stimulus check payment will NOT be offset or intercepted for those owe tax, have a payment agreement or owe other federal or state debts. It will however be OFFSET for past-due child support. This is because a court order for child support continues until it is modified or terminated. Similarly with unemployment compensation stimulus increases, your child support may be withheld from the UI payments. You will get a notice from BFS if this happens.
A New Stimulus Check Update
As noted, this comes at a time when such an effort is nonexistent at the federal level. Which could turn into a political time bomb for Democrats in a few months time, when the midterm elections arrive. Thats because stimulus checks could mitigate the effects of some nettlesome macroeconomic challenges, like soaring inflation and rising gas prices.
Regarding the latter, White House Correspondents Dinner headliner Trevor Noah joked about that very thing over the weekend. And even drew some chuckles from President Biden himself when he told the president not to worry, that things are looking up. Inflation is looking up, gas prices are looking up, rent prices keep going up
Having said that, this is why were seeing efforts like these in different states around the US right now. Along with the relief checks in Maine, of course:
- California: A gas tax rebate of up to $400 per car for up to two vehicles is under consideration.
- Georgia: A tax rebate is coming. It will mean $250 for single filers, $375 for heads of household, and $500 for married filing jointly.
- Hawaii: A tax rebate for every Hawaii taxpayer is under consideration $300 if you make less than $100,000, and $100 if you make over $100,000.
Also Check: Will Everyone Get A Third Stimulus Check
Who Is Eligible For The Third Stimulus Check
For the first two stimulus payments, single taxpayers earning up to $75,000 a year and couples earning up to $150,000 a year were able to get the full amount. Parents also received stimulus payments for each dependent child under age 17.9,10
Those income limits didnt change for the third stimulus payment even though it targeted the payments to lower income earners. Under the American Rescue Plan, payments phased out for single filers making between $75,000 and $80,000 and couples making between $150,000 and $160,000.11
Eligibility for the third stimulus check also expanded to cover any non-child dependents. That means taxpayers who supported certain eligible dependents age 17 and older might have received more money too.12
Do I Have To Pay Taxes On My Stimulus Payment
No. Since the stimulus check is considered a refundable tax credit, it is not classified as earned income. Hence not considered taxable income you will have to report in your 2020 tax return . It also wont affect your income for purposes of determining eligibility for federal government assistance or benefit programs.
This payment also does not have to be paid back if any over payment happens or your gross income in 2020 changes. This includes your income rising to above the qualifying thresholds. If you unexpectedly got the payment, congratulations! You get to keep it now.
Returning Incorrect Stimulus Check Payments
A few people have commented that a spouse, relative or child who died since they filed a 2018 or 2019 tax return received a stimulus check payment. The IRS has provided official guidance on this issue which states that any payments made to someone who died before receipt of the payment should be returned to the IRS in full. The exception to this is for payments made to joint filers and one spouse who had not died before receipt of the Payment, in which case, you only need to return the portion of the Payment made on account of the decedent
Read Also: How Does The Stimulus Child Tax Credit Work
Texas Teenager Raises Over $1 Million For Abortions After She Was Mocked By Rep Matt Gaetz
Olivia Julianna is a teenage girl that fights for abortion rights in Texas, and last week Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz tried to humiliate her by arguing that overweight and unattractive women shouldn’t worry about getting an abortion cause nobody wanted to get them pregnant.
Well Olivia has since thanked Rep. Matt Gaetz, because in the last three days she’s been able to help raise over $1,000,000 dollars for abortion care, through the Gen-Z for Choice Abortion Fund, as a part f the Gen Z for Change nonprofit.
Delaware: $300 Rebate Payments
In May, Delaware started sending relief rebate payments of $300 to taxpayers who filed their 2020 state tax return. The one-time payment is possible due to a budget surplus. Couples filing jointly will receive $300 each.
Payments were distributed to most eligible Delaware residents in May.
Instructions to claim the rebate havent yet been released for residents who havent filed a 2020 state tax return. Instructions are anticipated to be announced by Oct. 17.
Check your rebate status or get answers to frequently asked questions from the Delaware Department of Finance.
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Minnesota: $750 Payments For Frontline Workers
Some frontline workers can receive a one-time payment of $750, thanks to a bill signed by Gov. Tim Walz in early May.
Eligible workers must have worked at least 120 hours in Minnesota between March 15, 2020 and June 30, 2021, and were not eligible for remote work. Workers with direct Covid-19 patient-care responsibilities must have annual income of less than $175,000 between Dec. 2019 and Jan. 2022 workers without direct patient care responsibilities must have an income of less than $85,000 annually for the same period. You can apply for the payment through July 22.
Walz has more recently proposed using the states $7 billion budget surplus to fund a generous relief package, proposing that Minnesotans receive tax rebate checks of $1,000 per person. Doing so would require action from the state legislature.
Stimulus Check Worth $450 For Florida
Stimulus Check has been announced by the state of Florida. Ron DeSantis is the Governor of the state. He stated that families having children will be subjected to an amount of $450 as a direct payment.
Florida earlier issued payments of $1000 to honor the teachers for their hard work during the pandemic times.
Also Check: Why Would You Not Get A Stimulus Check
Who Will Qualify For An Inflation
The payments are similar to the stimulus checks sent by the federal government in that they are based on income, tax-filing status and household size.
Lower- and middle-income Californians stand to receive the biggest checks.
- Single taxpayers who earn less than $75,000 a year and couples who file jointly and make less than $150,000 a year will receive $350 per taxpayer.
- Taxpayers with dependents will receive an extra $350, regardless of the total number of dependents.
In other words, a couple that earns a combined $125,000 and has two children would qualify for $350 per adult plus $350 for their children, for a total of $1,050.
New Relief Checks Coming
The effort in Connecticut is thanks to the culmination of a new $24.2 billion state budget agreement. One that adds, for the first time in the states history, a child tax credit. The amount of that credit is $250 per child for up to three children under the age of 17.
The credit was reportedly made possible thanks to a budget surplus. Moreover, its only scheduled to be temporary. The credit would wind down one year from now but theres always a chance lawmakers could extend it at some point in the future.
Meanwhile, Vermont lawmakers have been a couple of different pending tax proposals to reconcile. Those include, among other things, different ideas on how the state should likewise adopt its own child tax credit.
The Vermont House, for example, has passed a bill that includes a state child tax credit of $1,200. The money would only go to families with children no older than 6. Also, the familys income could not exceed $200,000. The state Senate, however, has passed its own plan thats slightly different. It includes a $1,000 state child tax credit, targeted at families with children no older than 5. Those families would also have to make less than $55,000 a year in income.
Read Also: When Did The Second Stimulus Checks Go Out
Indiana: $125 Rebate Payments
Like Georgia, Indiana found itself with a healthy budget surplus at the end of 2021. In Dec. 2021, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced that Indiana taxpayers will get a $125 one-time tax refund after they file their 2021 taxes.
Theres no income requirement. Residents must have filed a state tax return for the year 2020 by Jan. 3, 2022, as well as a 2021 Indiana tax return by April 18, 2022, to be eligible. Payments started in May and are expected to continue through mid-summer, according to a state information page.
Taxpayers who file jointly will receive a single deposit of $250.
Most taxpayers will receive their additional refund by direct deposit. If you changed banks or dont have direct deposit information on file, youll receive a paper check in late summer.
For more information, visit the state Department of Revenue website. More information will be added for taxpayers who dont receive their payment by Sept. 1.
In June, Holcomb announced a plan to send additional payments of about $225 to taxpayers, but it hasnt yet been approved by the state legislature.
Coopers Proposal: What Does It Include
Last week, Gov. Cooper revealed his plans on how his government would use the $6.2 billion surplus. Cooper detailed his recommended adjustments to the second year of a two-year budget that the lawmakers approved last fall. In addition to what the budget already includes, the latest adjustments call for higher pay for state employees and teachers.
The budget that Im presenting today will build on our success and strengthen those areas that need reinforcement, Gov. Cooper reports.
Prior to the budget proposal, the General Assembly and Cooper administration revealed that the state would exceed the revenue projections for the current fiscal year by about $4.2 billion. Also, the authorities raised the projections by about $2 billion for the year starting July 1.
Cooper has raised the second-year spending by $2.3 billion to $29.3 billion to use some of the surplus. Also, $2.4 billion of the surplus would go toward many itemized investments, including infrastructure, economic development and workforce training.
Cooper’s proposal doesnt call for additional tax cuts, nor does it set aside more money for the state’s rainy-day fund. The governor notes that the fund is on track to hit $4.25 billion.
Cooper refers to the budget proposal as a smart, fiscally sound budget, adding, I think that its clear that we want to invest more than do.
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Fed Rate Hike: Do Mortgage Rates Go Up When The Fed Raises Rates
The United States Federal Reserve decided to increase rates by another 75 basis points on July 27,2022 with the range shifting to 2.25 percent to 2.50pc.
The increase follows the additional hike of 75 basis points in June, to help combat the effects of rising inflation across the country.
“These rate hikes have been large and have come quickly and it’s likely that their full effect hasn’t been felt by the economy,” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said in a press conference.
Despite the fed’s initiative to combat inflation only time will tell if the recent interest hikes will have the desired effect on the country’s economy.
However, the tighter monetary policy can affect your money in several ways including your borrowing power and the interest you receive from your savings.
For info on how the interest hike could affect your daily life, read our article from earlier this morning here.
Unclaimed Property Program: Who is eligible for this direct payment?
United States residents in South Carolina are in for some good news as the state recently announced that thousands of natives are set to receive a tax rebate after 3.4 million dollars in checks went uncashed in 2019.
While the final amount will be decided on October 17, thousands of South Carolinians are set to benefit from a one-time cash bump this year after lawmakers agreed to send a total 1 billion dollars back to taxpayers.