President Trump said that with “so much money coming in from tariffs,” he is considering sending a small “rebate” payment to Americans.
“We have so much money coming in, we’re thinking about a little rebate,” he told reporters Friday. “But the big thing we want to do is pay down debt.”
A rebate is a partial refund of a payment. In this case, Mr. Trump’s goal appears to be to give Americans back some money after they’ve faced higher prices on some consumer goods as a result of his trade wars.
Mr. Trump has previously touted the tariff revenue, along with the economic growth effects from tax cuts enacted in his “one, big, beautiful bill,” as reasons why the law won’t ultimately add to the deficit despite the Congressional Budget Office estimating it will cost $3.4 trillion over the next decade.
Using some of the tariff revenue to send Americans money could also have a stimulus effect, if people spend it instead of saving it.
“A little rebate for people of a certain income level might be very nice,” Mr. Trump said.
He did not specify an amount for the rebate or where he would set an income cutoff.
Congress would likely need to approve any kind of rebate.
Sen. Josh Hawley, Missouri Republican, said he would introduce legislation to implement Mr. Trump’s idea that would “send a rebate check to every working person in America.”
“Working people need relief now. They’ve earned it,” he said on social media. “Let’s return this money to them asap.”
During Mr. Trump’s first term, he worked with Congress to send Americans pandemic relief checks and, in an unprecedented move, ensured his name would be printed on them.
There were two rounds of checks issued in 2020 during Mr. Trump’s tenure under pandemic aid packages Congress passed on a bipartisan basis. The first provided up to $1,200 per adult and $500 per qualifying child and the second up to $600 each for adults and children. The full amount was only available to individuals with adjusted gross incomes of $75,000 – $150,000 for married couples – after which the amount phased out.
A third COVID relief law, enacted by Democrats under President Biden, provided checks of up to $1,400 for each adult and child.
