IRS: Most of recent stimulus check money went to households making under $50K

More than half of the money disbursed in the third round of stimulus payments has gone to households with income of under $50,000, the Treasury Department said Tuesday.

About 52 percent of the funds sent out through June 3 went to households reporting adjusted gross income of under $50,000 on their 2019 or 2020 tax returns. An additional 10 percent of the stimulus payment amounts went to households that did not file tax returns in either of those two years, a group that typically has very low incomes, according to IRS data.

About 85 percent of the payment amounts went to households reporting income of under $100,000 or nonfiler households, the IRS data showed.

Bloomberg reported that based on the IRS data, households residing in states in the Midwest and West on average received the biggest payments, while households in the Northeast on average received the smallest payments. Household size was a key factor in the variation among states.

The third round of stimulus checks was established earlier this year by President Biden’s coronavirus relief law, and were a top priority for Biden when he took office.

Single filers with income under $75,000 and married couples with income under $150,000 were eligible for the full amount of $1,400 per person. The payment amounts phase out above those thresholds. 

In total, the IRS has disbursed 163.5 million third-round stimulus payments, totaling about $390 billion, through June 3. Ninety million of those payments were made the week after the relief law passed Congress, Treasury said.

The IRS is continuing to make payments to households who newly filed tax returns or who are eligible for larger payments based on their 2020 tax returns than they had received based on their 2019 returns.