# Instead of payroll tax cut, Trump now plans to send checks directly to Americans, soon **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 17, 2020, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678 "2020-03-17T19:48:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2020, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/81 "2020-03-21T18:17:09Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Inheritances arent taxable? šŸ˜• > > Income from what you got from the inheritance? Inheritances are only taxable if they are way big. Didnā€™t you follow the death tax nonsense? Now, once you get the inheritance, money from it like interest and dividends is taxable. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2020, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/82 "2020-03-21T20:29:26Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Inheritances are only taxable if they are way big. Didnā€™t you follow the death tax nonsense? > > Now, once you get the inheritance, money from it like interest and dividends is taxable. No, they never are, but the _estate_ may have to pay taxes. Yes, income from the inheritance is taxable. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/83 "2020-03-22T01:44:48Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > No, they never are, but the _estate_ may have to pay taxes. > > Yes, income from the inheritance is taxable. The estate paying it does not mean it is not taxable - just who pays the tax. But after you get the inheritance it is yours, and it seems odd to say that the inheritance is taxable. Income from that and all your other investments not IRAs and the like is taxable. Itā€™s not like I keep my inheritance from my father and my wifeā€™s from her father in a different bucket. Now, if **RivkahChaya** get so much investment income from the inheritance that she gets bumped, Iā€™m not crying for her. And you can get screwed by bumps in income. The first year I was on Medicare I paid more because I had some investment income two years before. I survived. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/84 "2020-03-22T03:38:43Z")
anyway, this is all spec, since my bet is that no one gets a dime. The Dems & the GOP wont agree. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/85 "2020-03-22T04:50:56Z")
There are a lot of misconceptions here. Inherited money from certain accounts is often taxable, such as non Roth pensions, just as they would be if cashed out by the original owner. You can sometimes avoid it by rolling into an IRA, but thatā€™s not always the case. What is true is that any debt held by the decedent is pass through to the estate, but inheritors are not responsible for remaining debt. This is all separate from any tax on the entire value of large estates. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/86 "2020-03-22T05:01:06Z")
Iā€™m still thinking about a proposal from an economist I heard today on NPR: a sales tax holiday, lasting months. The Feds pay states and localities the sales tax, the buyer pays none. If you want your subsidy, spend money. Benefits everyone who spends, and gooses demand for goods, which stimulates all sizes of businesses. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/87 "2020-03-22T05:43:03Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > Iā€™m still thinking about a proposal from an economist I heard today on NPR: a sales tax holiday, lasting months. The Feds pay states and localities the sales tax, the buyer pays none. If you want your subsidy, spend money. Benefits everyone who spends, and gooses demand for goods, which stimulates all sizes of businesses. Sounds good in theory but Iā€™m not sure shoppers pay that much attention to the sales tax to begin with. They are not likely to sense this psychological boost, ā€œMy grocery bill, which would have been $77, is now only $72, go spend!ā€ ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/88 "2020-03-22T05:53:24Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Sounds good in theory but Iā€™m not sure shoppers pay that much attention to the sales tax to begin with. They are not likely to sense this psychological boost, ā€œMy grocery bill, which would have been $77, is now only $72, go spend!ā€ Well, a) The working poor spend _all_ their money, so having (in my county) 8.25% more of it to spend is pretty compelling Iā€™d say. b) Anyone buying something more expensive, say a $500 TV, will save $41 _if_ they buy it before the tax holiday expires, which is a reasonably compelling reason to go get one sooner than later. c) Local businesses would get some uptake from both these cases (the poor spend 8.25% more, the less poor buy more goods than they would in the next (say) 90 days). d) Local governments get moderate stimulus from b and c. Again, Iā€™m not sold on this, but itā€™s an interesting notion. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/89 "2020-03-22T12:08:59Z")
Not all states have sales tax. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/90 "2020-03-22T12:35:16Z")
> [@susan](#): > > Not all states have sales tax. Almost all states without state sales taxes have local (county, municipality) sales taxes. Local sales taxes can exceed state sales taxes. The only states without either state or local sales taxes are Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon. [Cite](https://files.taxfoundation.org/20190130115700/State-Local-Sales-Tax-Rates-2019-FF-633.pdf), see chart on page 4 (pdf). Obviously this stimulus would need to be balanced with other stimulus measures. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/91 "2020-03-22T15:17:10Z")
Yup. I live in Oregon. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/92 "2020-03-22T15:41:31Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > Well, > > a) The working poor spend _all_ their money, so having (in my county) 8.25% more of it to spend is pretty compelling Iā€™d say. > b) Anyone buying something more expensive, say a $500 TV, will save $41 _if_ they buy it before the tax holiday expires, which is a reasonably compelling reason to go get one sooner than later. > c) Local businesses would get some uptake from both these cases (the poor spend 8.25% more, the less poor buy more goods than they would in the next (say) 90 days). > d) Local governments get moderate stimulus from b and c. > > Again, Iā€™m not sold on this, but itā€™s an interesting notion. I agree with all your math. I just doubt that most American shoppers do the math. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/93 "2020-03-22T16:41:35Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > I agree with all your math. I just doubt that most American shoppers do the math. Well, is the goal to boost consumer sentiment, or to pump money into the economy? The former seems nigh impossible in this climate, but a sales tax holiday would pump money into the economy using an existing mechanism that requires little overhead from states and localities and would put money in everyoneā€™s pocket in one way or another in a progressive fashion pretty much immediately, and boost local governments. Itā€™s not ideal (as susan points out), but the simplicity is striking. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2020, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/94 "2020-03-23T01:47:19Z")
[First economic-relief bill fails in the Senate, 47-47.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-lines-multi-trillion-dollar-coronavirus-aid-packages-163803368.html) ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2020, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/95 "2020-03-23T03:06:12Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > [First economic-relief bill fails in the Senate, 47-47.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-lines-multi-trillion-dollar-coronavirus-aid-packages-163803368.html) I believe this is the _third_ attempted coronavirus legislation (the first two passed), but perhaps Iā€™ve lost count. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2020, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/96 "2020-03-23T03:17:18Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Sounds good in theory but Iā€™m not sure shoppers pay that much attention to the sales tax to begin with. They are not likely to sense this psychological boost, ā€œMy grocery bill, which would have been $77, is now only $72, go spend!ā€ Not exactly. But if youā€™re really broke, and youā€™re in the grocery trying to figure out whether you can buy x, which you could really use, but youā€™ve already got $71 worth in your cart; and you count your money and find $77 in your wallet instead of $72, that makes a difference to whether you buy x. ---
**Author:** ![Patx2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/73ab20/32.png) [@Patx2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patx2)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2020, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/97 "2020-03-23T03:42:37Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > The payroll tax cut would have taken money from Social Security. Secondly, how do you reduce payroll tax on the thousands of workers who are being laid off? Stupid idea. Thank you, my thought exactly. People are laid off, they arenā€™t paying payroll taxes. They need help to keep their families afloat. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2020, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/98 "2020-03-25T07:40:25Z")
So the White House and Senate have apparently agreed on a $2 trillion bill. What are the figures on the direct payouts to Americans? Iā€™m about to sleep, would appreciate anyone who can find the details. Also something about injecting $6 trillion in liquidity, Whatā€™s that about? ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2020, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/99 "2020-03-25T16:25:57Z")
From CNN: > [@](#): > > Under the plan as it was being negotiated, single Americans would receive $1,200, married couples would get $2,400, and parents would see $500 for each child under age 17. > However, the payments would start to phase out for individuals with adjusted gross incomes of more than $75,000, and those making more than $99,000 would not qualify at all. The thresholds are doubled for couples. Iā€™m assuming this is based on gross income and not IRS adjusted income? If anyone finds an on-line calculator or table that shows the phase-down, please post a link. TIA. ---
**Author:** ![Skypist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skypist/32/169_2.png) [@Skypist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skypist)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2020, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678/100 "2020-03-25T16:52:04Z")
CNN says donā€™t expect a check until May at the earliest, based on the rollout time for past stimulus checks. So much for Mnuchinā€™s 2 weeks. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/instead-of-payroll-tax-cut-trump-now-plans-to-send-checks-directly-to-americans-soon/849678.md?page=6)