Social Security Recipients Will Automatically Get Virus Relief Checks

Kroger Posts 30 Percent Jump in March Comparable Sales, Borrows $1 Billion

Kroger Co’s comparable sales surged about 30 percent in March as consumers stockpiled due to the CCP virus pandemic, and the grocer said it had borrowed $1 billion to boost its cash reserve as it prepared for any fallout from the health crisis. The Cincinnati, Ohio-based company’s shares rose about 5 percent after the supermarket chain also maintained its forecast for the year, especially when most of its rivals have scrapped their estimates due to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus-related uncertainty. Kroger, however, said it was being conservative about its expectations due to a fluid environment caused by the outbreak. “It is too early to speculate what will emerge as the ‘new normal’ in food consumption at home or what the impact on sales will be in future periods,”…

The U.S. Treasury announced that Social Security recipients won’t have to file a tax return to receive a federal government payment to help offset the economic effects of the CCP virus outbreak.

“Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return need to take no action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in an April 1 statement.

The Treasury’s statement reverses guidance from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on March 30 that said seniors would have to file a “simple” tax return to receive the money.

The payments, as much as $1,200 for individuals, are part of a roughly $2.3 trillion economic relief package signed into law by President Donald Trump last week.

“The IRS will use the information on the Form SSA-1099 and Form RRB-1099 to generate $1,200 Economic Impact Payments to Social Security recipients who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019,” the Treasury said in a statement.

“Recipients will receive these payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits,” the agency stated.

The change comes after pushback from lawmakers and advocacy groups, who argued that people such as senior citizens or the disabled shouldn’t have to file a tax return just to get stimulus checks.

A group of 41 senators on April 1 sent a letter to Mnuchin and Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul saying the move would burden the vulnerable and disadvantaged.

“This [IRS] filing requirement would place a significant burden on retired seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, especially given the current unavailability of tax filing assistance from Volunteer Income Tax Assistance and Tax Counseling for the Elderly programs during the COVID-19 crisis,” the senators wrote. “We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return.”

Chuck Marr, director of federal tax policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a think tank, said the concept should be expanded to other groups.

“Now, it’s imperative that the administration use its authority and the information it already has to do the same for very low-income seniors and people with disabilities who receive Supplemental Security Income as well as low-income veterans who receive certain benefits from the Veterans Administration,” Marr told CNBC in a statement.

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Nearly 1,300 More CCP Virus Patients Hospitalized in New York as Death Toll Approaches 2,000

Nearly 1,300 new COVID-19 patients were hospitalized in New York in the past day as 391 more patients died in the hardest-hit state in the nation. COVID-19 is a new disease caused by the聽CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. New York officials reported 12,226 patients are now hospitalized with the disease, an increase of 1,297 from the day prior. Patients in intensive care rose to 3,022, an increase of 312, while the death toll from COVID-19 rose to 1,941. Another 1,167 patients were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of discharged to 6,142. New York is by far the most affected state in the nation, according to figures shown by state officials during a press conference in Albany. Paramedics push a gurney with a…