Fourth stimulus check: President Biden 'open to a range of ideas'

President Biden fourth stimulus check
(Image credit: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Although a fourth stimulus check hasn't been formally proposed, the White House chimed in once again with comments on where another round of possible relief payments stands.

In a press conference on Thursday (June 3) White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, "The president is certainly open to a range of ideas," when asked about the lawmakers pushing President Biden for more stimulus checks.

"He’s happy to hear from a range of ideas on what would be most effective and what’s most important to the economy moving forward," Psaki said.

Though Psaki's latest comments are encouraging, they reiterate that the White House, or President Joe Biden's administration, will not draft a bill including a fourth stimulus check as it did with the third stimulus check. The $1,400 payments, which are still going out, were included in Biden's $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan passed in March.

Instead, the White House has stated support for another round or recurring rounds of direct payments will need to come from Congress. 

"We'll see what members of Congress propose, but those are not free," Psaki said during a press conference in May. 

Fourth stimulus check: Lawmakers call for monthly payments

Interest in a fourth stimulus check or additional stimulus relief still holds support in Congress. Last month, seven Democratic members of the House Ways and Means Committee sent a letter to President Biden asking the administration to add recurring stimulus checks worth up to $2,000 to the American Families Plan.

We “urge you to prioritize both automatic [unemployment insurance] extensions and recurring direct payments tied to economic conditions,” the lawmakers wrote

“The pandemic has served as a stark reminder that families and workers need certainty in a crisis. They deserve to know they can put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. They should not be at the mercy of constantly shifting legislative timelines and ad hoc solutions.”

This letter echoed calls from House and Senate Democrats for additional stimulus checks, whether one-time or recurring. Earlier this year more than 50 House members sent one letter to the White House, while 21 Senate Democrats sent another. 

Eligible Americans have received three stimulus checks since the pandemic began. The first, worth up to $1,200 per person, was provided by the CARES Act passed in March 2020. The second, a $600 payment, reached bank accounts towards the end of 2020, and a third check of up to $1,400 per person, part of Biden's American Recovery Plan, is still being paid out in waves as last year's tax returns are processed.

Kate Kozuch

Kate Kozuch is the managing editor of social and video at Tom’s Guide. She covers smartwatches, TVs and audio devices, too. Kate appears on Fox News to talk tech trends and runs the Tom's Guide TikTok account, which you should be following. When she’s not filming tech videos, you can find her taking up a new sport, mastering the NYT Crossword or channeling her inner celebrity chef.