I’m sure most of you have already received your Economic Stimulus payment. We filed our income tax through Turbotax which somehow delayed our payment. But, better late than never! We plan on using this extra money for charitable purposes in these troubled times. How do you plan to use your Economic Stimulus payment?
George, I seriously considered using it to drink 2020 into oblivion but wiser heads prevailed. We ended up using it to pay off the last of Kitty’s chemo treatments. Not as much fun as my original idea but what the heck.
Jerry, that was money well spent. If we ever get to travel again and I visit your neighbor, the drinks are on me!
We saw the story on the news the other night. Apparently, a bunch of people getting these debit cards just assume they are spam and throw them away! They showed a woman on Long Island who had to go through bags of garbage to find the pieces of the cut up card and stick them together so she could get the number and get a new card!
Of course, we got ours via direct deposit a month ago and spent it on fast cars and loose women. Nah! I’ve been sending $100 each to a number of organizations, mostly those feeding the poor and elderly shut-ins. We’re going to be sending out another round of checks this month.
Jeff, fast cars and loose women need help too! I’m dismayed at the number of people who once lived paycheck to paycheck and now live from one food line to another food line. Our country needs a lot of fixing!
I’d assumed that I wasn’t even going to get one so I wasn’t expecting it. Then a check popped in about two weeks ago. No idea why they sent a check rather than using direct deposit since they have my banking info. It wasn’t really big enough to make me think of “doing” anything with it, so I just grabbed my phone and deposited it. I also filed with Turbotax but don’t know whether that was the cause of the check’s lateness.
Michael, the Wall Street JOURNAL mentioned that tax filers who used TURBOTAX experienced Economic Stimulus delays. We certainly did. Diane and I didn’t think we would qualify for this benefit but the Debit Card arrived yesterday so it’s time to spend it to stimulate the Economy.
I file through Turbo Tax and got my money direct deposited on the very first day they were deposited. Most of which has been spent on my eye doctor.
Steve, I hope that treatment helps your eyes!
We got ours early in the process (directly deposited to our checking account). We haven’t done anything with it yet, just transferred it to our savings account. We also received—a few days after the deposit—a letter from Trump which explained how HE had worked with Congress to get this magnificent sum to us. You probably heard my teeth grinding from wherever you were that day.
This is Deb, btw. I use DiscoDollyDeb on some other sites and I forgot to change my name here.
Deb, we knew it was you by the Donna Summer music in the background! You’re welcome here under any name.
I thought I heard The Bee Gees.
Deb, we were starting to doubt we would get any Economic Stimulus money since just about everyone one we knew received their money weeks ago. I was also expecting a paper check even though the Government has our banking information because our Social Security check get direct deposited every month. This Debt Card surprised me and at first I thought it might be a scam. I did call the phone numbers in the literature accompanying the Debt Card and activated the card. Now to spend it!
Deb, we got that letter too! Just infuriating. It is to laugh.
Jeff, Diane and I were confused when we opened the envelop with the Economic Stimulus Debt Card. Initially, we thought it was a scam, too. There was nothing official about the envelope. The Debt Card looked like one of those phony cards we get from time to time by sketchy “banks” that want us to give them our personal information. I can see why people threw it away! We’ve heard nothing about the Treasury switching from paper checks to Debit Cards.
This is the first I’ve heard about debit cards. I have had to pay for the past 2 years, and changed banks for my soc sec direct deposit in april, so I had to go online to “apply” for the stimulus. I got it in about 10 days.
I’ve spent about $500 so far, mostly tips (paid the nail lady for may even though I didn’t go, gave my hair lady a $60 tip when I saw her last week) and have so far given $50 – some each month – to the paper carrier, in addition to what I put on when I paid my yearly bill. I’ve also donated to meals on wheels, shelters, other charities and bought 2 dozen cans of dog food and 10 cans of cat food for food drives, in addition to food. I’ve also been getting take out at small mom and pop type restaurants. I’m going to (later in the summer) send $300 to the Biden campaign.
Not counted in this was $250 sent to Amy McGrath to get rid of Moscow Mitch, and 3 others. I’m hoping they do another stimulus to send more $$ to dem campaigns. I’m concentrating on the senate. Only house donation was to Amar Campa Najjar, who is running against the vile darryl issa and really doesn’t have a chance. I’ve worked on his campaign when he ran against the vile duncan hunter.
Maggie, some of our money will go to political causes and campaigns. But I’m concerned about the number of people in my community who have food issues, especially children. The schools are closed here and the meals many low-income kids would have received in school have disappeared.
PS I just got the letter yesterday from the POS in the WH, and my blood pressure probably went sky high. Not sure whether or not to send it back to the WH with a nasty note.
Maggie, we haven’t received any mail from the White House. Yet.
I got mine a few weeks ago; it was a check.
Half in savings, half in checking. Rainy days seem to be looming large.
Beth, you’re doing the Right Thing. The Economic situation is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.
Deb: concerning the gnashing of your teeth. I heard the sound here on the Florida Panhandle and wondered what it was. I should have known.
iWhy did you get a debit card instead of a check? We have friends who used Turbo Tax and got checks. Did Turbo Tax take a bite out of your stimulus amount? Ths is the first I have heard of receiving a debit card.
We got our payment about two weeks ago, a check in an official envelope from the IRS, which we deposited immediately. We’re using it to help pay for our new HVAC system. Charity is good, and you did a nice thing, George, by giving your money away, but we have this significant expense and needed the help with it.
Rick, we were watching the news two nights ago, and the consumer help woman told the story I related above. That was the first time we ever heard that debit cards were being used in this manner. Indeed, it was so unclear that Jackie was afraid we might have received one and thrown it away (thinking it was a second payment). To say that this has not been well publicized is an understatement.
Jeff, the Treasury really dropped the ball on not publicizing the switch from paper checks to Debit cards. Many people will cut the card up and throw it away thinking it’s junk mail.
George—the lack of publicity for the debit cards is a feature not a bug. They were purposely to look like junk mail in the hopes that a lot of people would trash them. It’s like the beyond-dreadful phone system to apply for unemployment benefits in many red states (particularly Florida): its only set up to handle a few hundred calls a day and thousands were calling. The states just hope people get frustrated and don’t call back. The person who designed Florida’s Unemployment system admitted as much. With the GOP, incompetence is part of the ideology.
Deb, you’re right. This whole Debt card scheme reeks of GOP cynicism. Thousands of people who need the Economic Stimulus money will be fooled into cutting up the Debt cards and throwing them away. Insidious!
Rick, we have no idea why we received the Economic Stimulus in the form of a Debt Card. We hadn’t heard the Treasury was switching from paper checks to Debit cards. Everyone has to use their Economic Stimulus money in the best way possible for their situations.
Ours came via check about 10 days ago. We have not filed electronically the last couple of years so had to wait through the mailing process.
Carl, the Government has our bank information because they send us Social Security payments every month. Why the Treasury decided to send us a Debt card is inexplicable.
I just chalk it up to government, the acme of inefficiency.
Carl, you’re right about Government inefficiency, but we could have used a heads-up on the Debt Card. We were expecting a paper check like many of our friends received.
I’m puzzled about these debit cards and am certainly glad I didn’t get one. With a direct deposit there’s nothing you have to do. And I can deposit a check with a few clicks on my banking app. How do you deposit a debit card?
Michael, we’re just going to use the Debt card like money. We shop for groceries once a week so we’ll use it there. And we’ll pick up some prescriptions from Rite-Aid. I’ll gas our vehicles. It won’t take long to burn through a couple thousand dollars these days.
Mine came in an envelope. As of today, it’s already all vanished into my dentist’s bank account for a crown on bicuspid 13 that busted about a week after my dentist put her practice in mothballs in March. With her back in action a week or so ago, today was round 1 drill & prep. In 2 weeks the new crown gets glued on. Fortunately, my IRS refund came a week or so ago to help cover the dental spending spree. Before all that I did send a check to the local food bank.
Art, crowns run around $2000 here. We had no tax refunds this year, but the Economic Stimulus Debt Card will get a workout.
$1565 + $440 for the long-delayed hygiene & X-Rays. And oh yes, my washing machine crapped out Friday (a Maytag dating from 1992, so no complaints). So another $560 for a basic machine that may or may not outlast me. Delivery tomorrow. A very expensive few days!
Art, when I was working at the College, we had a very minimal Dental plan. It covered two yearly cleanings and X-rays. It did pay for Patrick and Katie’s Orthodontistry, but little else. When I retired, we looked at several Dental plans and rejected all of them. We’re just paying out-of-pocket now. Yes, you did had an expensive week!
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