Quote:
Originally Posted by Dockside
Aww, we're you poor whiney libs as upset by the nearly $800 billion stimulus package Obama used to pay off his friends in the public sector?
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Maybe you should check your facts...
Did Everyone Receive Stimulus Checks?
The Act was unusual in that most taxpayers did not receive checks. Instead, they received tax rebates. Instead of waiting until the
April tax deadline, their withholding was cut. The Obama administration argued that they would receive benefits quicker.
The average taxpayer received a tax cut in 2009 of $400 per individual or $800 per family. They did not receive stimulus checks. Instead, the
tax cuts appeared in each paycheck starting in June 2009. Each employee saw about 6 percent less withholding.
The Stimulus Act gave them more than $20 billion in income tax credits for the 2009 tax year.
It budgeted $5 billion for other tax credits. There was $14 billion allocated for extended
COBRA copayments for the millions of newly-unemployed workers.In total, the Act budgeted
$65 billion for stimulus checks, credits for taxpayers and credits for the unemployed.
What Other Stimulus Benefits Did Taxpayers Get in 2009?
The ARRA didn’t rely just on checks. It targeted funds to stimulate spending on education, child care and big purchases. The goal was to stimulate auto and
home sales. The
child tax credit was expanded for the working poor. In addition, the earned-income tax credit was expanded for families with three or more children.
ARRA added a $2,500 tax credit for college tuition. Many of the newly-unemployed took advantage of this credit to update their skills or change careers. It budgeted more than $1 billion for an $8,000
tax credit for first-time homebuyers. It allowed taxpayers to deduct sales taxes on new car purchases.
It set aside almost $1 billion to suspend taxes on unemployment benefits. It also budgeted $70 billion to continue the
Alternative Minimum Tax shelter. In 2009, $2 billion was budgeted.
Stimulus Checks in 2008
The year before ARRA, the
Bush administration also sent out stimulus checks to battle the recession.
It spent $168 billion in total. It rebated taxes on the first $6,000 of income for individuals or first $12,000 of income for couples. Stimulus checks were mailed out as follows:
So a tax cut - if it looks like a duck,walks like a duck and quacks like a duck...
Source: https://www.thebalance.com/stimulus-checks-3305750
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