Second stimulus check: Mnuchin says second round of $1,200 payments coming
A Republican-passed bill will include a second round of $1,200 coronavirus stimulus payments, as a well as a reduced unemployment bonus, according to the Treasury Secratary.
As lawmakers in Washington look to near an agreement on a second coronavirus stimulus package, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said that a Republican-passed bill would include a second round of stimulus checks to eligible individuals left jobless as a result of the pandemic.
Mnuchin also stated that that the bill would replace the current $600 unemployment bonus with a lesser payment in the region of $200 or $300.
“[President Donald Trump] wants to get money into people's pockets now, because we need to reopen the economy,” Mnuchin told CNBC on Thursday.
In a seperate interview with reporters on Thursday, Mnuchin confirmed that the second payment would remain at $1,200, saying: "Our proposal is the exact same provision as last time" (via Bloomberg).
The news will come as a welcome relief to the millions of Americans who obtained the first $1,200 stimulus payment and are now anxiously awaiting the Senate to pass a bill that would see them receive a much-needed second payment.
![“[President Donald Trump] wants to get money into people's pockets now, because we need to reopen the economy,” Mnuchin told CNBC on Thursday.](https://img.asmedia.epimg.net/resizer/v2/K4XJGF3Y7FL6XMDG4DJ6LMEDCY.jpg?auth=4bcc4eaadab7904d42ad2867c436950446dbb28e419358f406eed5c78eb7be86&width=360)
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Second stimulus check: salary cut-off limit to fall to $40,000
However, higher-income earners who were eligible for the first round of payments are unlikely to qualify this time round. While the cut-off salary limit for individuals was $90,000 for the first round, it is likely that limit will drop to $40,000 in any new bill passed by the Republican-led senate.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell previously stated that payments should be narrowly focused on U.S. citizens with lower incomes — and specifically outlined a $40,000 income ceiling.
Republican lawmakers will likely pass a second round of payments supported by the knowledge of ample evidence that has shown that the expanded unemployment benefits helped to significantly boost consumer spending in the midst of record unemployment in the U.S.
However, the second $1,200 stimulus check tipped to be included in a Republican bill is much less than the $2,000 payment proposed in the Democrats’ HEROES Act, which was passed by the blue-controlled House of Representatives in May. However, that bill would also have to be passed by the Republican-led senate, where it has already been deemed “dead on arrival” by President Trump.