April 22, 2020 / BY MADELEINE CARLISLE
Like many Americans, 62-year-old Larry Dansky of Ashland, Ore., has been anxiously awaiting his family’s stimulus payment, a bit of extra income that could help pay the bills amid an unprecedented economic slowdown. But when he logged on to the IRS’ website to track his payment, he was alarmed to see it had been deposited into an old account that he had shut down last summer to get the bonus from opening a new one.
“I was kind of devastated because it [felt] like, ‘here comes a rescue ship,’ and it keeps on going by,” said Dansky. His bank rejected the payment and sent it back to the IRS, and he should eventually receive his stimulus payment as a paper check in the mail. However, the mailing address the IRS has on file for him is tied to a motel 140 miles from where he lives now. He said he called up someone at the front desk and offered them $50 to let him know when it comes. Then he’ll make the trek to pick it up.
The one-time stimulus payments are a tentpole of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, which is meant to prop up the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic. Americans who aren’t listed as dependents and whose income falls within a certain range can qualify for up to $1,200, or $2,400 for married couples filing jointly, as well as $500 per child under 17 years old. But many, like Dansky, are facing issues with receiving their payment.
Here’s a look at some of the problems being reported with the stimulus payments, and what’s being done to address those issues.
