$3,600 in new stimulus payments start hitting your account next month

A little less than two months from now, an all-new wave of stimulus checks will start hitting millions of families' bank accounts, in a transfer of wealth from the federal government to families with eligible children that represents one of the most sweeping actions taken to date in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Starting July 15, the IRS estimates that the first of about 39 million households will start receiving payments that will end up, over the course of a year, totaling as much as $3,600 for each eligible child. There may or may not be a fourth stimulus check approved by the Biden administration anytime soon, but put your thoughts about that aside for now -- whatever stimulus check update comes next from Uncle Sam, it's not likely to be as generous as this one. What these imminent payments represent is an expansion of the federal tax credit, which previously amounted to $2,000 over the course of a year. These amounts are per child, by the way, and what’s interesting about the payments is the potential base of recipients herein — we’re talking about families, so there’s a huge population of people who are eligible for this money.