California state lawmakers passed a bill approving $ 600 stimulus checks for nearly 5.7 million people on Monday. In doing so, they beat US lawmakers who have not yet approved a plan for issuing $ 1,400 stimulus checks to needy U.S. residents.
California checks are part of Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom’s $ 9.6 billion stimulus package designed to help the state recover from the COVID-related economic crisis. He and legislative leaders announced the package last Wednesday. Newsom is expected to sign the bill on Tuesday.
The $ 600 checks will be available to Californians qualified for the EITC tax credit. Typically, these Californians earn less than $ 30,000 a year.
Another check for $ 600 will be available to people who earn less than $ 75,000 a year and use an individual taxpayer identification number to file their taxes. This group includes people who do not have social security numbers, some of whom are immigrants and did not receive the $ 1,200 in federal aid payments sent in 2020, according to ABC News.
Some Californians will fall into both groups and, as such, will receive $ 1,200 in total.
In a statement released last Wednesday, Newsom said payments will be provided to these families shortly after they file their 2020 tax returns.
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By comparison, the United States Congress is still considering the $ 1,400 stimulus checks that are part of President Joe Biden’s $ 1.9 trillion stimulus package.
Checks themselves have become controversial among Congressional lawmakers, with some Republicans finding direct payments too expensive.
On Friday, House Democrats released the full text of their $ 1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which included direct cash payments of $ 1,400 to qualifying Americans.
But in an email sent to Republican House representatives last week, New Orleans Republican minority leader Steve Scalise asked party members to vote “no” on the bill. The bill is likely to pass the Democratic-led House anyway.
Although the plan has no Republican support in the Senate, Democratic leaders said they can use the budget reconciliation process to approve the bill without Republican support. Doing so would circumvent the Senate obstruction and allow the bill to be approved by a simple majority of votes.
Minority House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress would approve the $ 1,400 checks “before the end of February”. Biden said the checks will arrive “as soon as Congress passes my legislation”.
Newsweek contacted the Newsom office for comment.