IRS paid $3B in interest to taxpayers for late refunds in 2020: GAO report
By John Bowden - 03/03/21 05:42 PM EST IRS officials paid a record amount of interest on tax refunds last year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and a decision to allow taxpayers extra time to file their tax returns, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
A report from the agency released this week found that the IRS spent more than $3 billion on tax refund interest last year, a figure that dwarfed 2019's total and was attributed in the report to the number of paper returns the IRS received while many of its employees were working remotely, which led to delays. The GAO in its report faulted the IRS for not doing more to reduce the number of paper returns it receives annually.
"IRS’s overall 2020 performance was significantly impacted by its reliance on manual processes such as for paper returns, and its limited ability to process returns remotely while processing centers were closed," read the GAO report.
"GAO also found that about 23 percent of business tax returns were filed on paper even though an e-file option is available. IRS has not comprehensively identified barriers to business-related e-filing nor taken specific actions to increase e-filing," the report continued.
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https://thehill.com/policy/finance/domestic-taxes/541505-irs-paid-3-billion-in-interest-to-taxpayers-for-late-refunds-in
