You may not make enough money to get Musk's potential Doge dividend check: This is the salary cutoff
Investment manager James Fishback, who briefly worked with Vivek Ramaswamy in the earliest days of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), said the idea of a “Doge dividend” payment came in a dream.
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Fishback tweeted on X in February: “American taxpayers should receive 'Doge dividend': 20% of Doge Saves' money should be sent back to hardworking Americans as tax refund checks. This is their money!” Since then, both Elon Musk and Presidents Donald Trump have aired it.
Trump is certainly no stranger to economic stimulus payments. But that doesn't mean that the Governor's dividend will work like his co-stimulus check.
Tax discounts will only be paid to US households that pay net positive taxes.
Tax credits for low- and middle-income households are usually paid more than taxes. The Tax Foundation notes that the lowest 50% of earners in the U.S. pay about 3% of the total personal income tax collected by the IRS.
The Pew Research Center analysis found that taxpayers earn less than $40,000 and usually receive tax credits that exceed the tax they pay. Therefore, these taxpayers will not be eligible for a ticket dividend check.
While Doge dividends are a redistribution of wealth, as a tax rebate, it will exclude lower earners.
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One of the reasons for the U.S. to suffer high inflation following the pandemic is overstimulus and flooding the market with too much cash. Will the stimulus further stimulate more gasoline when inflation continues to burn?
Fishback doesn't think so. He claims taxpayers are more likely to save and invest money or pay off their debts.
Not every financial expert agrees. “I believe the inflation impact will be significant,” said Aaron Razon, a budget and personal finance expert at Couponsnake. “If a large amount is distributed among taxpayers, some people will invest, but many people will increase their spending. This in turn will increase demand, raise prices and may lead to more disruption in the distribution chain.”
Joseph Camberato, CEO of National Commercial Capital, agreed: “We all see everything that happens when the government conducts a stimulus check during Kuved. The impact this time will be smaller because it is a one-time expenditure, not a continuous monetary flow, but it will still increase the extra cash in the economy, which drives prices up.”
