IRS officials have touted the agency’s delivery of the latest news round of stimulus controls as reaching eligible Americans in “record time.” Still, some Social Security recipients in urgent need of financial assistance say they are still waiting for payment for emergency assistance.
“I have to postpone everything – utility bills, cable. I had to be late on rent,” Mark Stevens, 65, of Pensacola, Florida, told CBS MoneyWatch.
Stevens noted when the IRS said on March 12 that a payment date for Social Security recipients would be announced “soon,” and he expected his stimulus money to arrive soon, as the second emergency payment approved by lawmakers in late December came in two weeks had arrived. days of the law it approves. No luck.
“For me, ‘short’ is two to three days, not two weeks,” said Stevens, pointing out that he only has $ 600 in his bank account. “People in my situation feel lied to.”
The IRS has not specified when Social Security recipients and other federal aid beneficiaries can get their incentive vouchers, which are $ 1,400 for each eligible adult and dependent. But since many receive their federal payments via direct deposit to their bank account, they are amazed why it takes the tax authorities longer to deliver the checks to them than others. To date, the IRS has deposited more than 90 million payments into people’s accounts or mailed checks and prepaid debit cards.
Lawmakers “alarmed” by delay
The delay in providing incentive payments to Social Security recipients and others for government assistance has caught the attention of legislators. On Monday, members of the House Ways & Means Committee wrote a letter to IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig and Social Security Administration Commissioner Andrew M. Saul to voice concerns and demand an update on the delivery of checks to these groups for Friday.
“We were shocked to find out the most recently [Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Railroad Retirement Board and Veterans] beneficiaries who are not required to file a tax return have not yet received their payments and that the IRS is unable to provide an expected timeline for these payments, ”the lawmakers wrote in the letter.
They added, “Some of our most vulnerable seniors and individuals with disabilities, including veterans who have served our country honorably, are unable to afford basic necessities while waiting for their arrears.”
The IRS said Monday it will deliver another batch of checks on March 24, although many of those will be paper checks or prepaid debit cards that will be mailed to the recipients. Some Social Security recipients may be part of that round of payments or subsequent rounds of payment. The IRS did not respond to requests for comment about the delays for some recipients of Social Security and other programs.
The IRS has prioritized delivering the checks to people who filed their 2020 or 2019 tax returns, as well as those who used the “Non-Filers” website that the agency operated last year.
Problems getting answers
Part of the frustration Stevens and others feel is the difficulty they report getting information from the IRS ‘”Get My Payment” website. Stevens, who said he did not use the “Non-Filers” website last year, said he received a “Payment status not available” message,
That can mean a number of things. It could indicate that the tax authorities have not processed a person’s payment or that people are not eligible for an incentive payment, the IRS has noted.
Among those experiencing problems is Sydney Chandler from Los Angeles, who helped her disabled cousin follow his incentive check. So far, she said he has not received it and is getting the same “Payment status not available” response from the IRS website.
“What angered me and a lot of people was the fact that the IRS already had their direct deposit information,” Chandler said. “You can’t get an answer from the IRS or the Social Security Administration.”