By: Mike Winters
Since prices for necessities like shelter and food have risen by 8.5% year-over-year, many U.S. state governments are cutting checks to help their residents cover household costs.
The effort is mostly funded by tax revenue surpluses, either as automatic rebates mandated by state law or as part of legislation specifically to address the costs of rising inflation. Either way, residents are getting some extra cash over the next few months.
Here are 17 states where you might eligible for a check.
California
Sometime “between October 2022 and January 2023,” millions of Californians will receive a tax rebate paid out in cash — either as a direct deposit or debit card — totaling up to $1,050.
Most Californians will qualify for at least some money. The income limit for eligibility is $250,000 or less for individuals and $500,000 or less for heads of household or couples filing jointly. Recipients have to have been California residents for at least six months during 2020, and they must be residents when the payments are issued.
More details about eligibility can be found on the state’s Franchise Tax Board website.
Colorado
By the end of September, most Coloradans will have received a one-time tax rebate paid out as a mailed check totaling $750 for individual filers and $1,500 for joint filers.
Eligibility is limited to tax filers who were 18 or older on Dec. 31, 2021, lived in Colorado for the entirety of 2021 and filed a state tax return during the 2021 income tax year. More details can be found on the state’s Colorado Cash Back website.
Delaware
The Delaware Relief Rebate Program is mailing one-time $300 “relief rebate” checks to residents who either filed a 2020 or 2021 tax return or were 18 and older as of Dec. 31, 2021. Joint filers will receive $600, according to a press release announcing the funding.
The first round of rebates were issued in May to over 600,000 Delaware taxpayers who already filed their 2020 tax returns. The state provides a website to check your rebate status, in case you haven’t received it.
Florida
In July, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced one-time $450 stimulus checks to low-income earners already participating in the state’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. Families caring for children can qualify for these checks as well if they are part of the Guardianship Assistance Program.
Checks will be sent automatically, based on a database query by state officials, according to NBC affiliate WFLA.
Georgia
In May, Gov. Brian Kemp announced one-time tax refunds for residents with a tax liability in the 2020 tax year, provided that they filed state returns for both 2020 and 2021. Single tax filers qualify for funds up to $250, heads of household up to $375 and couples filing jointly up to $500.
Most of the funds were sent via check or direct deposit in August, although the state has advised that “it may take some time for all refunds to be processed.” Residents can still receive these checks if they haven’t yet filed a 2021 tax return.
More information about refund eligibility is provided on the state’s Department of Revenue website.
Hawaii
In June, Gov. David Ige announced one-time tax refunds for Hawaii residents, the total of which varies based on their income for the 2021 tax year.
Single filers who earned less than $100,000, or couples who earned less than $200,000, will receive $300 each. The benefit also applies to dependents, which means that a family of four would receive $1,200. Taxpayers who earned $100,000 or more, or couples who earned $200,000 or more, will receive $100 each, which also applies to dependents.
Funds were sent out by Sept. 12, either as a mailed check or through direct deposit. A government website provides more details.
Idaho
Earlier this month, Gov. Brad Little signed a new bill into law that redirects a state tax surplus into bonus rebates for residents who filed income taxes for both the 2020 and 2021 tax years, according to the Idaho Press.
The bonus rebate is $300 for individual filers and $600 for joint filers, or 10% of income taxes paid for 2020, whichever is greater. This is in addition to another tax rebate from earlier this year, which pays out $75 per taxpayer and each dependent, or 12% of income taxes paid, whichever is greater.
While most of the rebate checks from earlier this year have been mailed out already, the newer bonus checks are currently being processed. To receive the rebates, residents must file their 2020 and 2021 tax returns by Dec. 31, 2022. Idaho’s state tax commission website has more details.
Illinois
As part of the state’s $1.8 billion family relief plan, this month residents began to receive one-time income tax rebates totaling $50 for single filers who earned less than $200,000 in 2021 and $100 for joint filers who earned less than $400,000 in 2021. Tax filers also receive $100 per dependent, for a maximum of three dependents.
Payouts will be either direct deposit or a mailed check. More information about eligibility can be found on the Illinois Revenue website.
There’s an additional rebate worth up to $300 for homeowners if their gross income does not exceed $500,000 for joint filers or $250,000 for all other returns, per a press release announcing the funding.
Payments were sent by mail or through direct deposit beginning Sept. 12, but it will take roughly eight weeks for everyone to receive the funds, according to NBC Chicago. The state has a website where you can check the status of either rebate.
Indiana
As part of the state’s automatic taxpayer refund law, single and joint tax filers for tax year 2020 will receive one-time rebates of $125 and $250, respectively, regardless of income.
Most residents received these funds earlier this summer via direct deposit or mailed check. However, payments sent by mail are still experiencing delays related to supply chain issues.
In August, the Indiana legislature passed another round of rebates amounting to $200 for single filers and $400 for joint filers. Because of this, residents might receive a mailed check for combined payments, totaling $325 for individuals or $650 for married couples filing jointly.
More information can be found on the state auditor’s website.
Maine
Full-year residents who file a 2021 tax return by Oct. 31, 2022 qualify for $850 relief checks mailed to their homes. Eligibility is limited to those who make $100,000 or less for single filers, $150,000 or less for heads of household and $200,000 or less for couples filing jointly.
The first round of relief checks were mailed in June 2022, but checks are being sent out until the end of the year. More information can be found on the Office of Gov. Janet Mills’ website.
Massachusetts
Last week, Gov. Charlie Baker announced that tax rebate checks will be sent to full-year residents who file a 2021 tax return on or before Oct. 17, 2022. The checks are automatic rebates based on state law and will likely be worth 13% of each resident’s 2021 income tax liability.
However, this is a preliminary estimate that will be finalized in late October. The funds will be automatically sent to residents sometime in November through direct deposit or by mail.
A state website provides more information, as well as a calculator to estimate what the rebate might be.
New Jersey
If you haven’t yet filed a 2020 tax return, you can still qualify for New Jersey’s Middle Class Tax Rebate program, which offers a tax credit worth up to $500 for each child under 6. To qualify, residents must claim at least one dependent child and have a 2020 tax balance of $1 or more. More information can be found on the State Treasury’s website.
In June, Gov. Phil Murphy announced rebates for property taxes and rent. Homeowners earning less than $150,000 will receive a $1,500 rebate on their property taxes, while those earning between $150,000 and $250,000 will receive $1,000.
Renters earning up to $150,000 will receive $450 checks. However, these rebates will not be paid out until spring of next year, with details on how to apply coming later this fall, per NJ.com.
New Mexico
There are a couple of tax rebates available to New Mexico residents. For 2021 tax filers, an automatic rebate of $500 was sent in July to joint filers and heads of household who earned less than $150,000. A $250 rebate was sent to single filers who earned less than $75,000.
Another refundable rebate for all residents followed in August. The second disbursement has no income thresholds, with single filers receiving $500 and joint filers and heads of household receiving $1,000. No action is needed, as residents receive these payments automatically by direct deposit or check.
New Mexico residents can still claim both of these credits if they haven’t yet filed a 2021 tax return, according to New Mexico’s Taxation and Revenue website.
New York
In June, homeowners started receiving property-tax rebates worth an average of $1,050. The average benefit in New York City is about $425, according to a press release announcing the funding.
To be eligible for this credit, New York residents need to qualify for the 2022 School Tax Relief (STAR) program, have income below $250,000 for the 2020 tax year and have a school tax liability for the 2022-2023 school year that is more than their 2022 STAR benefit. More information about eligibility can be found on the state’s Department of Taxation and Finance website.
In late August, New York City Mayor Eric Adams signed legislation to provide a one-time property tax rebate of up to $150 to hundreds of thousands of eligible New York City homeowners.
To be eligible for the rebate, the property must be your primary residence and your annual income must be less than or equal to $250,000 for the 2020 tax year. More information on how to apply can be found on the city government’s website.
Pennsylvania
As of September, low-income homeowners enrolled in Pennsylvania’s Property Tax Rent/Rebate program will receive a one-time tax rebate. To be eligible, homeowners must be 65 and older, widows and widowers 50 and older or people with disabilities 18 and older.
This bonus rebate follows a previous rebate that recipients claimed in 2021. The new rebate will be sent in September, amounting to 70% of the original. That means a claimant who received a maximum standard rebate of $650 in 2021 will receive an additional one-time bonus rebate of $455, according to a government website FAQ.
It’s not too late to claim both rebates: The deadline for the first disbursement has been extended to Dec. 31, 2022. To make a claim for either rebate, visit myPATH, the Department of Revenue’s online filing system.
South Carolina
As part of a tax cuts bill, South Carolina residents who have a tax liability in their 2021 returns will receive a rebate worth up to $700. That amount is an estimate: The actual maximum amount will be calculated by the state’s department of revenue sometime after Oct. 17.
Funds will be sent by Dec. 31, 2022, but no sooner than Oct. 17, which is the deadline to claim the rebate.
The money will be delivered via mailed check or direct deposit. A more detailed explanation can be found on South Carolina’s Department of Revenue website.
Virginia
To “help families lower the cost of living,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin recently announced that Virginia residents with a tax liability in 2021 are eligible to receive a one-time rebate of $250 for single filers and $500 for joint filers.
To receive the rebate, residents must file their 2021 tax returns by Nov. 1. Residents who filed their tax returns by July 1 should receive their rebate via direct deposit or mailed check by Oct. 31. Residents with tax returns filed between July 1 and Nov. 1 should receive their rebate within four months of their file date.
