As the growing anticipation for the rumored fourth stimulus check continues to loom, a recent social media post caused misinformation and gave false hopes to a lot of people.
On May 5, a Facebook user posted about a fourth stimulus payment worth $2,000 per person would be arriving by Memorial Day weekend. The post also mentioned a child tax credit of $300 to $500 a month that will run from July to December.
The post that was shared almost 250 times is now labeled “false Information” and is wrong on more than one point.
There is no legislation about the fourth round of relief direct payments in the U.S. Congress and while the Internal Revenue Service is set to send a monthly payment for a bigger child tax credit this coming July, the posted amounts were incorrect.
The first three waves
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic back in the spring of last year, Congress has already given the green light for three stimulus payments for eligible Americans.
Through the CARES Act, the first round came on March 2020 and was worth $1,200 in addition to $500 per child. The second tranche came in December 2020, amounting to $600 per person and $600 per child.
The third stimulus check payment was approved last March 2021, where each American received $1,400 while dependents of all ages also got the same amount.
The passing game
While the distribution of the third stimulus payment by the IRS is still ongoing, there are already rumors about the fourth stimulus payment worth $2,000 per individual.
Asked about the possibility of such, the White House has punted back-related discussions to Congress and while dozens of its members have already expressed their support to the ongoing stimulus payments, neither of the chambers has given approval for a fourth payment.
It is again down to a waiting game for all of those that are desperately waiting for additional relief during these persisting pandemic times.
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