California will begin sending “inflation relief checks” to residents in October, right before Election Day, as voters are mailing in their ballots, thanks to a plan launched by Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and agreed to earlier this year by the state’s Democrats.
As Breitbart News reported, Newsom’s plan began as a proposed rebate to help residents afford the high cost of gasoline, which is more expensive in California than in any other state thanks to taxes and regulations (which were not reformed).
Ultimately, the Democrat-dominated state legislature, which had refused to delay a rise in the gas tax, agreed to the “inflation relief checks.” Coincidentally, they will begin arriving as Newsom, who is up for reelection, will face the voters’ verdict.
SFGate.com explained the schedule for rolling out the money to middle- and low-income California households:
To receive these benefits, which were approved as part of a 2022-2023 state budget surplus, individuals must have completed a 2020 California tax return and make no more than $250,000 individually or $500,000 if filing jointly. (All numbers listed must reflect filer income in the 2020-2021 tax year.) Refunds will be sent starting in October and will run through January 2023. In total, the state will send out an estimated $9.5 billion to Californians.
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The state of California has an estimator available for individuals looking to confirm their refund.
Ironically, economists have said that Newsom’s plan will not reduce inflation, but could actually increase it by pumping more money into the economy at a time when the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates to bring down the high inflation rate.
This is not the first time Newsom has distributed cash payments to large portions of the electorate when he has faced a tough electoral fight. In 2021, facing a recall election, Newsom gave rebates to roughly two-thirds of the households in the state.
Though Newsom is considered an easy favorite to win reelection, he is also trying to help Democrats win congressional races, many of which could be close this year, as the district boundaries were recently redrawn and control of Congress is in doubt.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is also up for reelection, also distributed similar checks to many families in his state to help them deal with inflation. However, the money was sent in July and August, before the school year, as it was theoretically aimed at helping parents cope with the rising cost of school supplies. Only parents or guardians were eligible for the money.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.