Ruppersberger: IRS Must Update Americans on Status of COVID-19 Stimulus Payments

(Timonium, MD) – Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD) today requested the IRS create a new system that will enable Congressional offices to keep constituents updated on the status of their Economic Impact Payment (EIP) – or stimulus check – authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. So far, the IRS has issued more than 128 million payments, but millions more Americans have yet to receive their payment and have no way to know when they might.

The IRS has told Congressional offices it is unable to answer questions about specific EIPs and that it is also unable to provide individual assistance with the “Get My Payment” and “Non-Filer: Enter Info Here” tools online.

“We are fielding dozens of calls each day from constituents who want to know how much they are receiving, when it will be delivered, how it will be delivered and who have questions about offsets,” Congressman Ruppersberger wrote in a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. “Many of these constituents are facing dire hardships amid the COVID-19 pandemic and are understandably anxious and frustrated.

As a Member of Congress, service is my highest priority and it is my responsibility to tender responses from federal departments and agencies for my constituents. That we remain unable to provide timely answers to reasonable and basic questions is no longer acceptable.”

Congressman Ruppersberger requested Secretary Mnuchin establish guidance to the IRS to process Congressional inquiries. The full letter is available here.

The CARES Act authorized payments of $1,200 per adult and $500 per child to most American families. The Treasury Department has announced that it began making automatic EIPs to eligible recipients April 14.