Second Stimulus Check: If Agreement Isn't Reached by Friday, Americans Won't See Next Payment Until September

Americans have already been waiting months for another stimulus payment, but they may have to wait even longer after negotiations on Capitol Hill ground to a halt last week. With both sides still seeming far off on reaching a deal, the second round of payments may not come until September at the soonest if an agreement isn't reached by Friday, Aug. 14.

Speaking with CNBC, Chad Hooper, the national president of the Professional Managers Association, which counts Internal Revenue Service (IRS) managers among its members, noted Friday is a key deadline for negotiations. At least in terms as to when Americans could expect to see another direct payment. Hooper explained that that IRS is "better positioned" to send stimulus checks in August than it was in April, a process that encountered many issues and errors, and that "the infrastructure is already in place to administer such a payment."

This deadline for August stimulus payments mostly has to do with the fact that even once a deal is reached, the legislation will have to be voted on and approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Both of these chambers are currently on their summer recess, which is set to last until Tuesday, Sept. 8, though they are on 24-hour notice to return to Washington in case a deal is reached. This would mean that if an agreement were reached, votes would not take place until 24 hours later.

After passing both chambers, a process that could take two days, the bill would then need to be signed by President Donald Trump. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has claimed after this process takes place, the IRS will begin distributing payments almost immediately — meaning, if a deal is struck by Friday, payments could begin being sent likely the last week of August.

Despite this optimism regarding the speed with which payments could be sent, stimulus payments, as well as other relief measures, still face an uphill battle. Discussions between Mnuchin, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer remained deadlocked due to opposing views and an unwillingness to budge. These circumstances seem to have not changed in recent days. Ever since talks failed, both sides have accused the other of refusing to compromise, with the price tag of the next package seeming to be the most significant obstacle. Recent reports even suggested that serious discussions were unlikely to resume this week due to Meadows being out of work for the remainder of the week. It remains unclear if discussions have or will continue.