PADUCAH — The president and vice president will continue to tour battleground states this week, while touting the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan. It will provide more stimulus checks to Americans. Some are already beginning to see those payments.
That raises the question: What are you going to do with your stimulus check? Byron Cox plans to use his on a major home improvement project. He’s lived in his house in Paducah for more than 40 years.
“And the same furnace has been here. We’ve really, for years, I mean my dad babied it, and we worked with it and kept it going,” Cox said.
Replacing a furnace isn’t cheap. Without an additional $1,400 coming into his bank account from the relief plan, Cox may not have been able to get a new one installed for some time.
Byron Cox plans to use his $1,400 check on a new furnace for his home.
“Two-and-a-half years ago we had a lot of work done on it, and we talked about buying one then,” Cox said. “This year, when they came out again he said, ‘well you’re going to be looking at that much money or more.’ And I said, I’m just going to get a new one.”
Individuals haven’t been the only ones hit hard by the pandemic. Local businesses have had to cope with little to no customers coming through the doors. But these latest stimulus payments could change that.
“Hopefully, we have what they’re looking for,” said Kris Hornback. She co-owns Danno’s Price is Right, a store that sells used furniture, appliances, and home decor.
Horback says past stimulus checks have brought more customers through the door. In turn, they’ve been able to sell items that may have been harder to get off the shelves.
“The washing machines, for sure. The bedroom sets, people are looking for bedroom things. And everything we get kind of comes in at random, so there’s always something different in here,” Hornback said.
As for Cox, he wants to make sure his stimulus check is money well spent.
“I try to do a bigger project when I have money like that,” Cox said. “Whether it’s a tax return, or whatever, so this stimulus is definitely going to be helpful for me.”
March 17 marks the official payday when many Americans should begin to receive their deposits from this round of stimulus payments. Some people may have seen pending or provisional payments in their accounts already, and millions of direct payments are slated to go out Wednesday. Like the stimulus payments that went out last year, people who will be receiving their payments in mailed checks can expect to receive them later than when direct deposits go out.
You’re able to track the status of your stimulus payment through the IRS’s website. To find out how you can track your payment click here.
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