With record-high gas prices raising concern among Americans, government officials are looking into Stimulus Checks to alleviate the expense burden.
Los Angeles became the first major American city to have a gas price of $6 or more on Tuesday. According to GasBuddy, after reaching a high of $4.35 a gallon on March 10, the national average gas price in the United States has begun to decline.
One proposal asks for a stimulus check, while others propose taxing oil companies. Reps. Mike Thompson of California, John Larson of Connecticut, and Lauren Underwood of Illinois have introduced legislation.
$100 Stimulus Check Has Been Proposed
The rebate would be distributed in the same way that the most recent Economic Impact Payments (EIPs) were, with single filers earning less than $75,000 receiving a $100 refund. Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon introduced the Stop Gas Price Gouging Tax and Rebate Act, which would “create a windfall profit tax on excessive corporate profits and return the cash to American consumers in the form of a tax rebate.”
If a company’s adjusted taxable income (ATI) exceeds 110 percent of its average ATI between 2015 and 2019, it will face a one-time 50 percent windfall profit tax in 2022, according to the plan. According to DeFazio, the windfall profit tax money would be returned to consumers in the form of a monthly, advanced, and refundable tax credit that would scale down as income increased. He added that the qualifying conditions for the COVID-19 pandemic stimulus checks will be the same.
California’s Democratic state senators proposed a $400 gas rebate for each taxpayer, funded by a $9 billion surplus in the state budget.
