Why Many Taxpayers Are Receiving Smaller Refunds This Year
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Many taxpayers are receiving smaller tax refunds this year than in previous years.
The Details: Tax professionals and the IRS have attributed the smaller refunds to the expiration of several pandemic-related boosts to tax credits and deductions." A recent Bank of America analysis reportedly showed that many wealthier taxpayers are actually receiving larger tax refunds this year. Researchers believe there may be a correlation between receiving higher tax refunds and owning a stock portfolio.
For context: In a year of high inflation, many taxpayers will use their tax refunds to pay off debt, according to a Bankrate survey. The Biden Administration previously pushed to renew bigger child tax credits for families, but the extension was voted down by Congress. Just this week, the IRS released an $80 billion spending plan that is aimed at increasing enforcement and services.
How The Media Covered It: Sources across the spectrum covered the news similarly, emphasizing that the smaller refunds are the result of pandemic-era policy expirations. MarketWatch was the most in-depth in their coverage, offering analysis on smaller refunds disproportionately affecting working and middle-class taxpayers.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Right
Why your IRS tax refund may be smaller this year
Uncle Sam is a bit stingier this year when it comes to refunds on Americans’ income tax returns.
The average refund check handed out to the 72 million Americans who filed their 2022 income tax returns as of March 17 was down 11%, according to figures calculated by the Internal Revenue Service.
The IRS figures were first cited by Bloomberg News.
According to the tax-collecting agency, the average refund payment was $2,993 — which is down 9.4% from $3,305 at the same time last year.
As of March 17, the federal government...
From the Center
Your tax refund will probably be smaller this year — unless you have a stock portfolio
If you’re feeling underwhelmed by the size of your income-tax refund this year, you’re probably not alone.
Before the start of the 2023 filing season, tax professionals and the Internal Revenue Service were cautioning U.S. taxpayers that many refunds would likely be smaller this year due to the expiration of a number of pandemic-related boosts to tax credits and deductions.
The filing deadline is Tuesday, April 18 — except for those who file for an extension — and the predictions about smaller refunds are coming into focus. The drop in refund amounts...
From the Left
Tax Day is Tuesday. Here's what to know about filing, extensions.
Taxes are due April 18 — three days after the normal April 15 deadline — giving procrastinators a short reprieve to file income tax returns or an extension this year.
The big picture: The regular deadline falls on a weekend and Washington, D.C.'s Emancipation Day is Monday.
By law, D.C. holidays affect tax deadlines for everyone the same way federal holidays do, the Internal Revenue Service says. The holiday marks the end of slavery in the nation's capital.
More than 168 million individual tax returns are expected to be filed, with the vast majority of those coming...
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