CONSUMERS WAITING TO SEE TAX REBATE CHECKS IN MAIL.

Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer

As consumers flock to their mailboxes in anticipation of a tax rebate check, many are coming up empty handed, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll released Thursday.

Seventy-four percent of 1,017 adults 18 years old and up said their checks had not arrived.

``And some are just not sure if they're going to get one,'' said Russell Fox, a certified financial planner with American Express in Ventura.

The checks, part of President Bush's $1.35 trillion tax cut, are being doled out between July 23 and Sept. 25 with the timing based on the last two digits of a Social Security number.

The lower the last two digits of a Social Security number, the sooner consumers should receive a check.

Reducing debt and expanding the investment portfolio are the most popular methods so far of disposing of the checks that have arrived, the poll found.

Thirty percent of taxpayers used their rebate checks to pay off bills, and 28 percent invested the money.

The latter is what financial advisers recommend.

``My clients who have received the checks are putting the dollars in a tax deductible retirement account,'' Fox said. ``That way, they get another deduction on free money.''

Other uses by those surveyed include 11 percent splurging on something they might otherwise not have bought while 15 percent used the money for everyday expenses.

``It really depends on the person,'' said Donald Samuel, a financial adviser with American Express in Los Angeles. ``If you have any outstanding debt you should use the check for that purpose.''

While the impetus of the tax rebate check is to stoke consumer spending, some remain skeptical it will have a beneficial impact.

``Obviously it's yet to be determined, but people get a refund on their tax returns at the end of the year already, so I don't think it will necessarily will spur the economy,'' Fox said. ``And I don't think it will enhance people's lives.''