Second Stimulus Check: Americans Anxious for Payment, Searching Google for Answers

There still is no deal in Washington for a second stimulus check during the coronavirus pandemic, but Americans are still searching for information on one. Google search trends for new information on a second check has skyrocketed in recent days as the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus continues. The first Economic Impact Payment was part of the CARES Act signed into law in March, and payments were sent out in mid-April.

Searches for "2nd round of stimulus check approved" jumped 4,250% and "when will the senate vote on the next stimulus package" climbed 2,150%, according to a Newsday analysis of Google Trends. The number of searches for "did the second stimulus check get approved" jumped 4,050% in the past week. In just the past day, searches for "are we going to have a second stimulus check" jumped by 300%, while "will there be a second round of stimulus check" climbed 250%. Searches for "second stimulus check date" jumped 3,050% and "did the heroes act pass" climbed 2,600% in the past week. The searches show how anxious Americans are for more help from the federal government, in line with a recent OnePoll that found 82% of the 2,000 Americans polled believe the one-off stimulus payment was note enough.

The $2.2 trillion CARES Act included a one-time Economic Impact Payment of at least $1,200 per American who paid taxes for 2018 or 2019, with an adjusted gross income of under $75,000. Joint-filers received double that, and $500 was added per dependent under 17. Those with incomes between $75,000 and $99,000 saw smaller checks, and those with incomes over $99,000 were not eligible for a check. Some Americans are still waiting on their payments, even though the IRS started sending them in mid-April.

Earlier this month, House Democrats narrowly passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act. It includes a second one-time payment of $1,200 for American, with some households eligible for up to $6,000. Howe,ver the bill as written is not going to pass the Senate, and some Republicans argued that the payment could go to illegal immigrants because it made anyone with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) eligible for a payment.

There has been increased pressure on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to work on another relief package, even from senators of his own party. During a Fox News interview Thursday, McConnell said the Senate was "not quite ready to intelligently" put together the next package, but "it's not too far off." McConnell's position has been to wait and see how the CARES Act plays out, adding, "I think there's a high likelihood we will do another rescue package, but we need to be able to measure the impact of what we've already done, what we did right, what we did wrong [and] correct that." The only thing McConnell could say for vertain was that the Senate's package will not look like the "left-wing wish list" the House passed.