Montgomery Co. residents could be getting 2nd stimulus check
SPRING, Texas (KTRK) -- Instead of sending the money back, some Montgomery County leaders want to give its residents a second stimulus payment.
There's more than $100 million in the county to help fight COVID-19, and county leaders said it's looking like they won't need it for medical reasons, so they want to pump it into the economy.
It's a move some neighbors believe could go a long way.
"I do live here in The Woodlands, and it's a little pricier," said Hoai Trinh. "It definitely helped, the last stimulus checks. I'm definitely for it if does come down to it."
Montgomery County resident Abigail Luna believes a lot of people who aren't working could really benefit from it.
Commissioner James Noack wants unused money given to the county by the federal government to go directly to neighbors. Currently, unused funds have to go back to the federal government by the end of the year.
"What I'd like to do is try to find a way to get that money back in the hand of the taxpayer, because they're the ones that have really been harmed the most during COVID-19," Noack explained.
Here's what Noack would like to do: Property owners would receive a check based on what they paid in taxes. On average, he said it would be about $300 a family. County Judge Mark Keough wants to go even further.
He'd like to develop a plan to include renters and business owners who lease space in the county. First, they need to get approval from the federal government and figure out how to distribute funds.
"It's not the federal government's money," Noack said. "It's not the state of Texas' money. It's not Montgomery County's money. It's the taxpayers' money."
Noack said he doesn't want to spend all the $105 million on stimulus checks, in case there's a second wave of coronavirus cases.
