HEROES Act Stimulus Calculator — Proposed 2020 Payment
The HEROES Act (Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act, H.R.6800) was passed by the House of Representatives in May 2020 but never enacted by the Senate. It proposed a more generous stimulus payment than the CARES Act — $1,200 per qualifying adult and $1,200 per dependent (up to 3 dependents). Enter your filing status, income and household size to see your estimated payment under the proposed bill.
Filing status
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$
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Proposed payment under the HEROES Act (H.R.6800) — never enacted
$3,600
Estimated paymentAdults
33.3%
Dependents
66.7%
- 1
Adult base
1,200 × 1 = 1,200 - 2
Dependent base
1,200 × 2 = 2,400HEROES Act capped qualifying dependents at 3 per return. - 3
Total base (before phase-out)
1,200 + 2,400 = 3,600 - 4
Phase-out reduction
0 — AGI is at or below the threshold = 0 - 5
Estimated HEROES Act payment
max(0, 3,600 − 0) = 3,600
How does this calculator work?
The HEROES Act proposed $1,200 per qualifying adult plus $1,200 per qualifying dependent (max 3), reduced by $5 per $100 of AGI above $75,000 single / $150,000 MFJ. A married couple with 3 kids could have received up to $6,000. The bill passed the House but was never enacted — enter your details to see your hypothetical payment.
Formula
How this is calculated
The HEROES Act proposed a per-person payment of $1,200 for each qualifying adult and $1,200 for each qualifying dependent, capped at three dependents per tax return. For a married couple with three children this would have been $2,400 (adults) + $3,600 (dependents) = $6,000 before any income-related reduction — significantly more than the actual CARES Act payment ($2,400 + $1,500 = $3,900 for the same family).
The income phase-out matched the CARES Act structure: payments began reducing by $5 for every $100 of Adjusted Gross Income above $75,000 for single filers ($112,500 for heads of household, $150,000 for married couples filing jointly). Unlike the CARES Act, the HEROES Act also proposed payments to adult dependents — a category that was later included in the American Rescue Plan (Round 3) that actually became law.
The bill never became law. The amounts and phase-out rules in this calculator are from the proposed legislation (sources: H.R.6800 as passed by the House) and are clearly estimates. The actual payments that were distributed came from the CARES Act (March 2020), the Consolidated Appropriations Act (December 2020), and the American Rescue Plan (March 2021).
Frequently asked questions
The HEROES Act was a $3 trillion relief package passed by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives on 15 May 2020. Senate Republicans objected to its size and proposed their own alternative (the HEALS Act) in July 2020. A compromise was eventually reached — but it was the CARES Act (already enacted in March 2020) and later the much smaller Consolidated Appropriations Act in December 2020 that actually became law. The HEROES Act was never brought to a vote in the Senate.
The HEROES Act proposed a higher dependent payment ($1,200 vs $500), capped dependents at three per household, and extended eligibility to adult dependents. It also proposed a second round of checks even before the CARES Act funds had fully reached recipients. The CARES Act, which did become law, paid $500 per qualifying child under 17 with no dependent cap.
No — the HEROES Act never became law. If you believe you were underpaid on an actual stimulus round (CARES, December 2020, or ARP), you may have been entitled to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 or 2021 tax return. Contact a tax professional or visit IRS.gov for guidance.
Also known as
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). HEROES Act Stimulus Calculator — Proposed 2020 Payment [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/stimulus-heroes-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "HEROES Act Stimulus Calculator — Proposed 2020 Payment." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/stimulus-heroes-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "HEROES Act Stimulus Calculator — Proposed 2020 Payment," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/stimulus-heroes-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_stimulus_heroes_calculator, title = {HEROES Act Stimulus Calculator — Proposed 2020 Payment}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/stimulus-heroes-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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