A Connecticut-based research group says most of the government-issued stimulus checks are making their way into gas tanks, fueling overseas economies.

The Connecticut Public Interest Research Group released a study Wednesday that found many people are using stimulus checks to pay for gas, which nationally has surpassed $4.00 a gallon.

?You?re helping out primarily the economy of the country that?s supplying the crude oil,? says Edward Deak, the head of economics at Fairfield University. ?That could be Kuwait, or Saudi Arabia, or Venezuela or Mexico.?

Deak says the government would rather see the money spent domestically, instead of filling wallets abroad.

?The problem is what happens when it runs out?? he says.