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 first tweeted on X in February: “American taxpayers should get ‘Doge Rictedend’: 20% of Doge Saves’ funds should be sent back to hard-working Americans as tax refund checks. First of all, 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.

Pew Research Center analysis found that taxpayers earn less than $40,000 usually have more tax credits than taxes paid. 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 allocated between taxpayers, some people will invest, but many people will increase their spending. This in turn increases demand, raises prices, and can lead to more disruption in the distribution chain.”

Joseph Camberato, CEO of National Commercial Capital, agreed: “We all see what happened when the government was conducting a stimulus check in the common period. The impact this time will be smaller because it is a one-time expenditure, not a continuous flow of funds, but it will still add extra cash to the economy, which will drive prices up.”