Stimulus checks continue to capture the attention of millions of eligible Americans. One could say that the process of providing these direct payments has expired, but in practice there are still many people who still have no money. Why? It turns out that the California State Tax Board recently identified two major issues related to direct payments. The first of these is that there are still 5,000 payments outstanding; Second, 1.2 million preloaded debit cards were shipped.
In the latter case, this high number was not activated. This is a very strange element considering the number of eligible people who already have the money but have not yet used it.
The Middle Class Tax Refund sends stimulus checks ranging from $200.00 to $1,050.00 to California residents. Grants began being sent out just a year ago, but official data shows 5,000 payments still need to be made.
Payments are sent in two different ways. The first option is direct deposit; The second option involves debit cards on which the appropriate amount is preloaded for each taxpayer. To date, 13% of cards are not activated, which is more than 1.2 million debit cards.
$600 million unspent
The cards, which have not yet been activated, offer benefits worth nearly $600 million. The state of California is currently warning those who have the card in hand and have not yet used their money. Authorities are sending letters to these taxpayers to remind them that they can use the transferred money.
Once the card is active, beneficiaries can use it to make purchases in brick-and-mortar stores or online. Another advantage is that the cash balance can also be transferred directly to the person’s bank account.