The Senate voted overwhelmingly to pass a budget amendment that would block stimulus checks from “upper income” taxpayers.
Sens. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, and Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, authored the amendment with the backing of a bipartisan group of lawmakers.
It’s nonbinding but passed by a vote of 99-1, sending a strong signal that lawmakers may agree to a narrower group of recipients for the next round of checks.
The measure does set a specific income limit but could result in lawmakers authoring the COVID-19 aid legislation reducing the income threshold for stimulus checks below the threshold used for the last round of checks issued in December.
President Biden and House Democrats have signaled they are willing to lower the income cutoff after complaints that the last round of checks ended up going to families with incomes as high as $300,000.
“I don’t want to speculate on the figure, but I think that may well be under consideration for adjustment from the one that was passed in December,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, said.
The amendment passed as part of the budget resolution senators hope to pass by Friday. The House will then have to clear the measure, which paves the way for the Senate to later pass a COVID-19 aid package with 51 votes instead of the usual 60 votes.
Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent and socialist, said he supports capping the income level at $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples, which is the same rate as the December checks. But Sanders said he is not opposed to the Collins-Manchin amendment aimed at preventing “upper income” earners from getting the checks.
