A new stimulus proposal
Millions of Americans may see new dollars of relief if a proposal in Congress is made into law. California Democratic Representative Ro Khanna has floated the idea of sending $2,000 payments to individuals who make less than $100,000 per year.
Khanna feels that the payments need to be made to counteract the higher price Americans are paying because of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. In an email to Newsweek, he wrote, “Trump’s across-the-board tariffs are harming American families. We should return the revenues collected from these tariffs to working people.”
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Why it matters
President Trump has imposed, suspended, and re-substituted a range of sweeping tariffs on imports from American trade partners ever since entering the presidency a few months ago. His publicly stated goals have varied from stopping illegal immigration and preventing drug smuggling to reducing trade deficits.
But these tariffs have added to the expense for average Americans as well. Consumer prices in July were 2.7% higher than last year, above the 2% goal the Federal Reserve aims for. Remove food and energy from the calculation, and core prices rose even more sharply, to 3.1%.
The tariffs also added volatility to the stock market, which both declined and improved on announcements from the Trump administration.
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Trump’s own rebate idea
Most noteworthy, Trump himself has suggested returning some of the tariff money to the public. Early this year, he suggested rebate checks of $1,000 to $2,000 per person, noting that tariff collections have flooded massive amounts into the U.S. Treasury.
Thursday, in an interview with One America News (OAN), Trump once more threw around this idea. Khanna quickly took to social media to make his remark: “Wasn’t this my proposal?”
The terms of Khanna’s proposal
In a video on his website, Khanna explained why he is calling for more stimulus checks. Tariffs are an “unfair tax on Americans” that have raised the price of living every day—from housing to groceries, he said.
Khanna believes that since tariff revenues come from American families, the money should go right back to them. His bill would send $2,000 checks to those who make less than $100,000 annually.
He has also worked with Republicans on the same ideas. Earlier this month, for example, Khanna and Rep. Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, introduced the “No Coffee Tax Act” to repeal coffee tariffs.
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Other proposals in Congress
Khanna is not the only one who has suggested direct payments. Senator Josh Hawley, a a Missouri Republican, has also introduced the American Worker Rebate Act, which would provide $600 rebate checks to all Americans. His bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Finance.
Khanna also supported stimulus checks during the COVID-19 pandemic, showing his long-standing favor for direct payments to families.
Record tariff revenues
Part of the reason that this proposal is even possible is the record amount of revenue being taken in from tariffs. The U.S. government had collected a record $150 billion in tariffs to date through July of 2025, with nearly $28 billion of that collected in that single month.
Tariffs collected so far for this fiscal year totaled $108 billion, close to twice as large as the amount during this period in 2024. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said that revenues possibly could reach $500 billion a year, or even $1 trillion.
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Support and opposition
Supporters think that the funds should be returned to taxpayers. Senator Hawley explained, “Americans are owed a rebate after years of failed policies. Like President Trump proposed, my bill would send back to workers a fair share of tariff revenue.”
One official at the Department of Homeland Security also defended Trump, saying that his tariffs are fixing a “broken trade system” and reducing reliance on other nations.
Critics, however, believe tariffs are bringing suffering to plain Americans by raising the price of essentials. Khanna and others argue if tariffs continue, rebate checks are the most fair way to mitigate the pain.
What happens next?
Khanna’s measure is in its early stages. After officially being introduced, the bill would be sent to a congressional committee. If it is passed, it could then go to debate and a vote.
For now, the possibility of a fresh $2,000 stimulus check remains in the proposal stage—but with record tariff revenues and bipartisan backing from Democrats and Republicans in Congress, plenty of Americans are waiting with bated breath to see if relief is on the horizon.
