The last quarter of 2022 will see numerous stimulus checks across 17 states reaching residents with the California Middle-Class Cash Back the biggest of them all. Despite apprehensions of a further spike in inflation, states are reaching out to residents, sending them inflation relief rebates, stimulus checks in the form of direct transfers, debit cards, and paper checks, sales tax waivers, and tax rebates.
Residents in 21 states have received or are set to receive, some sort f benefits. While most states are opting for one-time payments, others like New Mexico and California have given out multiple state stimulus checks and both states are giving out a round in October.
The California stimulus check has set aside a huge sum out of its whopping surplus budget of $97 billion. Around 23 million residents are set to get an inflation relief check within a few days, part of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s initiative to offer financial assistance to working families who were stricken by high prices of gasoline and groceries.
Who Will Benefit From The California Middle-Class Cash Back Stimulus Check?
The stimulus check is included in the $17 billion relief package which is part of the California state budget. The relief package also includes the cost of suspending the sales tax levied by the state on diesel fuel, and also additional aid to residents for utility and rent, the Governor revealed this week.
California gas prices remain among the highest in the US with vehicle owners paying an average of $6.42 per gallon as against $3.87 annually.
Around 60% of the population of the Golden State is set to directly benefit from the stimulus check. The payments will start going out on October 7. And while a section of the beneficiaries will get their payment through debit cards, an overwhelming majority will get immediate relief as the cash-back rebate will be transferred directly to their account as detailed in the income tax returns.
The majority of beneficiaries should be getting their stimulus check in a few days and most payments will be completed by October, close to 90% of the total beneficiaries of 23 million. This was revealed by the California Franchise Tax Board.
The direct payments will go out to residents who have included details of their bank accounts in their income tax returns for 2020. Other taxpayers who did not include their bank account details and only entered their addresses will receive their payment through a debit card.
Other beneficiaries who will get a debit card include people who have filed paper returns, people who owed taxes from their income tax returns for 2020, and filers who received a direct deport for their 2020 refunds but have since switched banks or changed their bank accounts.
Residents who received advance payments from the tax service or those who used their tax refund to pay their tax preparer will also receive payment through debit cards.
How Much Will You Get?
The California cash-back stimulus check is based on income and the size of the family. For both individual and married filer status, the amount is divided into three layers of payment. The highest stimulus check amount is for individuals with earnings of $75,000 or less. They will get a gas rebate of $350 plus another $350 if they declare any dependent in their recent tax form.
For married couples filing jointly and earning $150,000 or less, the amount comes to $350 for each filer plus another $350 for any dependent. This is the highest cash-back slab and comes to $1,050 for a family of three or more.
For individuals earning between $75,001 and $125,000, the cashback amount is $250, and another $250 for any dependent. For married couples earning between $150,001 and $250,000, the cashback amount is $500 for the couple plus another $250 if they declare any dependent. The maximum possible amount for a family of three or more is $750 under this layer.
The highest income layers are between $125,001 and $250,000 for individuals, and they get a stimulus check of $200 plus the same amount for a dependent. The maximum total amount for a family of three or more comes to $600 under this level.
The tax amount added for a dependent is the same as for the filer and is paid for only one dependent irrespective of the number of declared dependents.
Other support for residents other than providing refunds to most state taxpayers includes resources into expanding access to abortion, and an extended health care scheme that comers most undocumented immigrants. The bill was signed over three months ago by Governor Gavin Newsom. There is guidance on how the money will be sent and Newsom has called it an investment at a pivotal moment into our core values.
In a statement, he said that the government will continue to be a model for what responsible and progressive governance should remember and strive towards building a better future for all molded on what he termed the California way.
Gov. Newsom and other Democratic Party legislative leaders announced a deal for the state spending plan which has been expanded to touch record heights even as the economy recovered faster than anticipated from the coronavirus pandemic.
There were debates in the state Assembly and Senate into whether the tax relief should be tied to ownership of vehicles, on increased funding for housing, social safety nets, housing, climate, and a plan that would give state regulators extra control while approving projects linked to clean energy.
These states are not as large as the federal stimulus check that was sent during the pandemic, but the situation is also not as desperate as it was immediately after the pandemic before the first of the federal stimulus checks went out back in April 2020.
Other states have not gone for as elaborate measures as taken by California and some states have relied on ARPA funds instead of their budget surplus. Florida, for instance, is giving a $450 stimulus check to caregivers, foster parents, and people on welfare. Only around 59,000 residents of the Republican-ruled state are expected to benefit from the scheme.
