Mnuchin Says Stimulus Payments to Households Could Come Next Week

Payments within days would be even faster than the payments went out during the first round of aid this past spring. Then, it took about two weeks for the first batch of payments to reach bank accounts and months for others to receive the money. And even that was far faster than the payments to households during a downturn in 2008.

The bipartisan congressional agreement includes $600 per adult and $600 per child, changed from the $1,200 and $500 payment amounts that Congress authorized in March. The deal also expands the payments so they include so-called mixed-status families where one spouse has a Social Security number and is eligible for money but the other spouse isn’t.

Lawmakers haven’t yet released the text and all the details of the bill.

Mr. Mnuchin, who was one of the administration’s lead negotiators, praised several other aspects of the deal, including additional Paycheck Protection Program loans and expansion of a tax credit for retaining employees, bumping the latter program to $10,000 an employee per quarter from $10,000 a year. The agreement is also expected to make the credit—a wage subsidy—more generous and clarify that PPP recipients can use the tax credit.

“This is a very, very big incentive for small business as well,” Mr. Mnuchin said. “For those businesses that did last, this is going to be the needed relief to get them through next year.”

Mr. Mnuchin said targeted support for airlines, restaurants and live entertainment were necessary to help industries that were particularly hard-hit during the pandemic.

He also said he had spoken several times to Janet Yellen, who is President-elect Joe Biden’s pick to succeed him as Treasury Secretary in January.

Write to Richard Rubin at [email protected]