175 Million Americans Will Start Receiving Funds Soon, Says Kudlow

Larry Kudlow, Director of the National Economic Council, speaks to the press at the White House in Washington, on Oct. 5, 2018. Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images

An estimated 175 million Americans will receive stimulus payments this week or the next, said President Donald Trump’s economic adviser, Larry Kudlow.

“The checks from the Treasury and the IRS [will] probably start going out, I think this week, perhaps early next,” Kudlow told CNBC in an interview on Monday.

A massive, $2.2 trillion stimulus package was passed in Congress that will send out payments of $1,200 to most Americans and $500 for children under the age of 17. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Kudlow have both previously said that the payments would go out in mid-April.

Mnuchin told Fox Business on Tuesday that the direct payments are slated to be sent by the end of next week.

“The president is very much looking at how we can reopen parts of the economy,” Mnuchin remarked. “There are parts of the country, like New York, where obviously this is very, very concerning. There are other parts of the country where it’s not.”

The Trump administration hopes that “in the next four to eight weeks, we will be able to open the economy,” Kudlow also told Politico on Tuesday morning.

The stimulus package was passed in Congress after states closed down restaurants, hotels, bars, salons, entertainment venues, and other businesses described as nonessential amid the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus pandemic. So far, at least 10 million Americans have filed for unemployment claims, and the number is widely expected to rise even more.

Individuals earning up to $75,000 will get a check for $1,200, while couples earning up to $150,000 will get $2,400. And parents get $500 for every child under the age of 17. To qualify for a direct payment, one has to have a Social Security number, meet the adjusted-gross-income thresholds, and file your taxes either independently or jointly with a spouse.