Senator Carlucci Is Crafting A Bill To Shield Stimulus Checks From Debt Collectors

Democratic state Senator David Carlucci is drafting a bill to prevent coronavirus stimulus checks from being subject to wage garnishment in New York. Carlucci recently started a petition to protect residents’ stimulus checks by urging the federal government to code the stimulus payments as federal benefit payments. Coded this way, banks cannot freeze payments as the payments will automatically be identified as subject to the garnishment protections under state and federal law. Carlucci says residents should pay their debts, but creditors should not receive a windfall.