STORY UPDATED: check for updates below.
Are a new round of stimulus checks being issued in the U.S. on July 30, 2021? No, that's not true: This is a prank post intended to lure people in and play a crude joke. There were, as of July 15, 2021, no bills working their way through the U.S. government aimed at issuing further stimulus checks to all Americans.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Facebook on July 15, 2021. It opened:
And it passed 15 minutes ago. WE GET ANOTHER STIMULUS CHECK FOR $2500 on July 30, 2021. We did it!!!
The article below tells u what you need to do to receive it quicker and how to track it I already filled out my form.
This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Thu Jul 15 22:27:19 2021 UTC)
Those who click the link to a reddit URL are greeted with a middle-finger salute from a gorilla (see below.)
(Source: Reddit screenshot taken on Thu Jul 15 22:27 2021 UTC)
On March 11, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus plan that included direct payments to individuals.
As of July 14, 2021, there were two proposals for additional stimulus, but no viable legislation:
-- On March 31, 2021, Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, sent to Biden a proposal for additional payments, signed by 21 senators. It has not progressed past the drafting stage.
-- Meanwhile, 2.6 million have signed the Change.org petition urging Congress fund another round of stimulus checks to individuals: $2,000 for adults and $1,000 for each child.
Lead Stories' review of the Congressional Record (archived here) found no recent action on proposals to fund another round of stimulus checks.
Lead Stories debunked a very similar misleading post in July of 2020 with the exact same image.
Updates:
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2021-07-16T00:06:13Z 2021-07-16T00:06:13Z Updated to include links to stimulus petition and a Senate proposal.
