GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — By now, some Americans have already received a notification that a $600 stimulus check will arrive in their bank accounts in a few days. For the rest of the country, the money should arrive in the coming days or weeks.
As reported by ABC News, "the coronavirus pandemic is not only a health crisis but a financial one: shuttering businesses, upending entire industries and whipsawing financial markets -- erasing trillions of dollars in the process."
Here's a breakdown of how the COVID-19 relief bill breaks down:
- Individuals making up to $75,000 a year can expect a one-time payment of $600
- Couples making a combined $150k a year, will get a $1,200 dollar check
- The bill adds $300 a week to unemployment benefits
- About $300 billion will help American small businesses
- Billions of dollars to help distribute the covid-19 vaccine
While stimulus checks should reach most Americans, there are some exclusions. 13 ON YOUR SIDE talked to financial expert and President of Mitch Lyons Wealth, Mitch Lyons, about who should expect to receive checks and what he advises people do with the money.
"It will include an extra 600 dollars for dependents under the age of 17, so who that excludes — that people aren't going to be really happy about — are college-aged kids," says Lyons. "A lot of people are not going to get benefits for college-age kids and also adult dependents are not going to qualify as well.
"This pandemic has shown us you need to have a 'slush fund,' some saved money so frankly I would recommend you put it right into your bank account," recommends Lyons. "You're not going to make much but you're not going to lose anything. And the reality is that there is a lot of uncertainty ahead. That's hopefully coming to an end with the vaccines, but there are still a lot of unknowns. Its better to be safe than sorry with that money."
Phillip Mitchell is the President of Kroon and Mitchell in Grand Rapids. He says the $300 billion set aside for small businesses could potentially keep the ones that are really struggling afloat for a few more months.
"This is going to be another round of potential loan forgiveness money coming to a small business like a restaurant, and maybe give them one last chance at a lifeline," says Mitchell. "If you've been in business for a hundred years and you've going to go under because of this, this is horrible!"
Mitchell says unlike the first COVID relief package, this bill creates more opportunity for the smallest of businesses.
"What some people found is early on in the first round of PPP money, some of the bigger ones got the money quicker and some of the smaller ones were not around to get it, or maybe did not have a banking relationship," says Mitchell. "So what they did is they set more money aside just for businesses with under 10 employees."
Experts still warn that when the government writes the big checks like this second stimulus package, tax payers will be the ones that pay it all back... eventually.
"We're writing a lot of big checks as a government and ultimately we're taking loans from our future, which means higher taxes at some point in the future whether that's higher tax rates, lower thresholds or deductions lost," says Mitch Lyons. "This money is going to have to come from somebody at some point in the future. There's a lot of money tied up in 401ks and IRAs and I think frankly that's a big bullseye for congress and the IRS to ultimately tax down the road. So as much as we can I like to eliminate peoples tax payments and at the very least mitigate, but those are the areas that people should be worried about if they are not."
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