SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
President Joe Biden speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House on March 2, 2021 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)
'Madness': In Cave to Right-Wing Dems, Biden Agrees to Further Limit Eligibility for Direct Payments
"Some people who got checks when Trump was president won't get them now that Biden is president. There is no upside to this, only the massive downside of handing Congress to the Republicans next year."
Mar 02, 2021
This is a developing news story... Check back for possible updates...
In the face of pressure from a faction of conservative Senate Democrats, President Joe Biden reportedly agreed Wednesday to limit eligibility for direct relief payments by accelerating the phase-out of $1,400 checks proposed in the emerging $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package.
Under the new eligibility structure, according to the Washington Post, individuals earning $75,000 or less annually and couples earning $150,000 or less will still receive full $1,400 payments, as proposed by the relief package passed by the House last week.
But under the latest framework pushed by conservative Democrats and accepted by Biden, the phase-out of the $1,400 checks will end at $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for joint filers--meaning individuals and couples who earn more will receive nothing, not even partial payments. The House bill proposes (pdf) ending the phase-out at $100,000 in yearly income for individuals and $200,000 for couples.
Among the Senate Democrats who pushed for the quicker phase-out were Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).
Progressives have warned that because eligibility for the checks could, for some, be based on the income reported on their 2019 tax returns, people who were doing relatively well before getting hammered by the pandemic will be denied direct relief. Under the House relief bill, the IRS would be directed to base eligibility for the payments on 2020 income for those whose returns are on file.
"This is not targeting," Matt Bruenig, founder of the People's Policy Project, said last month of earlier efforts to restrict eligibility. "It is the illusion of targeting, an illusion that will end up hurting tens of millions of people who are currently in need but weren't in 2019."
An analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy finds that the new eligibility framework adopted by Senate Democrats with Biden's support would result in around 12 million fewer adults and five million fewer children receiving direct relief payments than would have gotten them under the House plan. The Senate is expected to begin voting on its version of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package as early as Wednesday afternoon.
Robert Cruickshank, campaign director at advocacy group Demand Progress, pointed out Wednesday that under the new eligibility structure, "some people who got checks when Trump was president won't get them now that Biden is president."
"There is no upside to this, only the massive downside of handing Congress to the Republicans next year," Cruickshank added. "Madness."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
This is a developing news story... Check back for possible updates...
In the face of pressure from a faction of conservative Senate Democrats, President Joe Biden reportedly agreed Wednesday to limit eligibility for direct relief payments by accelerating the phase-out of $1,400 checks proposed in the emerging $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package.
Under the new eligibility structure, according to the Washington Post, individuals earning $75,000 or less annually and couples earning $150,000 or less will still receive full $1,400 payments, as proposed by the relief package passed by the House last week.
But under the latest framework pushed by conservative Democrats and accepted by Biden, the phase-out of the $1,400 checks will end at $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for joint filers--meaning individuals and couples who earn more will receive nothing, not even partial payments. The House bill proposes (pdf) ending the phase-out at $100,000 in yearly income for individuals and $200,000 for couples.
Among the Senate Democrats who pushed for the quicker phase-out were Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).
Progressives have warned that because eligibility for the checks could, for some, be based on the income reported on their 2019 tax returns, people who were doing relatively well before getting hammered by the pandemic will be denied direct relief. Under the House relief bill, the IRS would be directed to base eligibility for the payments on 2020 income for those whose returns are on file.
"This is not targeting," Matt Bruenig, founder of the People's Policy Project, said last month of earlier efforts to restrict eligibility. "It is the illusion of targeting, an illusion that will end up hurting tens of millions of people who are currently in need but weren't in 2019."
An analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy finds that the new eligibility framework adopted by Senate Democrats with Biden's support would result in around 12 million fewer adults and five million fewer children receiving direct relief payments than would have gotten them under the House plan. The Senate is expected to begin voting on its version of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package as early as Wednesday afternoon.
Robert Cruickshank, campaign director at advocacy group Demand Progress, pointed out Wednesday that under the new eligibility structure, "some people who got checks when Trump was president won't get them now that Biden is president."
"There is no upside to this, only the massive downside of handing Congress to the Republicans next year," Cruickshank added. "Madness."
This is a developing news story... Check back for possible updates...
In the face of pressure from a faction of conservative Senate Democrats, President Joe Biden reportedly agreed Wednesday to limit eligibility for direct relief payments by accelerating the phase-out of $1,400 checks proposed in the emerging $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package.
Under the new eligibility structure, according to the Washington Post, individuals earning $75,000 or less annually and couples earning $150,000 or less will still receive full $1,400 payments, as proposed by the relief package passed by the House last week.
But under the latest framework pushed by conservative Democrats and accepted by Biden, the phase-out of the $1,400 checks will end at $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for joint filers--meaning individuals and couples who earn more will receive nothing, not even partial payments. The House bill proposes (pdf) ending the phase-out at $100,000 in yearly income for individuals and $200,000 for couples.
Among the Senate Democrats who pushed for the quicker phase-out were Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).
Progressives have warned that because eligibility for the checks could, for some, be based on the income reported on their 2019 tax returns, people who were doing relatively well before getting hammered by the pandemic will be denied direct relief. Under the House relief bill, the IRS would be directed to base eligibility for the payments on 2020 income for those whose returns are on file.
"This is not targeting," Matt Bruenig, founder of the People's Policy Project, said last month of earlier efforts to restrict eligibility. "It is the illusion of targeting, an illusion that will end up hurting tens of millions of people who are currently in need but weren't in 2019."
An analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy finds that the new eligibility framework adopted by Senate Democrats with Biden's support would result in around 12 million fewer adults and five million fewer children receiving direct relief payments than would have gotten them under the House plan. The Senate is expected to begin voting on its version of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package as early as Wednesday afternoon.
Robert Cruickshank, campaign director at advocacy group Demand Progress, pointed out Wednesday that under the new eligibility structure, "some people who got checks when Trump was president won't get them now that Biden is president."
"There is no upside to this, only the massive downside of handing Congress to the Republicans next year," Cruickshank added. "Madness."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.