- A bipartisan group of senators introduced an amendment to exclude high-income families from receiving $ 1,400 stimulus checks.
- The change does not provide a limit for exclusions from stimulus checks.
- Republicans and some Democrats have expressed support for lowering income limits for stimulus payments.
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A bipartisan group of 16 senators co-sponsored a budget amendment on Thursday to exclude high-income families from receiving $ 1,400 stimulus checks. The request was part of the so-called “vote-a-rama” of the Senate, where the amendments are not binding.
Led by Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, the amendment does not specify a limit for excluding stimulus checks. He said only that he would prevent the payment of “high-income taxpayers”.
The measure passed 58 votes to 42. Senator Bernie Sanders, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said he did not support the distribution of stimulus payments to six-figure families.
He added: “I absolutely want to make certain people who earn $ 75,000 or less a year receive their payments and couples who make $ 150,000 or less a year receive their payments.”
It was filed as part of the “vote-a-rama” that started on Thursday afternoon, which allows any senator to propose an amendment to a budget resolution. The resolution is expected to pass as Democrats move forward with the guarantee of approval of President Joe Biden’s $ 1.9 trillion aid package without Republican Party votes.
The move underscores the ongoing debate in Congress over who should qualify for a new wave of $ 1,400 stimulus checks. Biden and White House officials say they are willing to commit to the revenue cap – but not the size – of direct payments.
“More segmentation means not the size of the check – it means the income level of the people who receive the check,” Biden’s spokesman Jen Psaki said at a news conference on Wednesday. “This is something that is under discussion.”
Some Democrats are eyeing a new plan that would target stimulus payments to low-income families. The proposal would provide only a total check of $ 1,400 for people earning $ 50,000 or less. Then, couples who earn $ 100,000 or less qualify for a full federal payment.