A federal court ruled the IRS cannot keep withholding coronavirus relief payments from incarcerated people, potentially clearing the way for at least 80,000 checks totaling more than $100 million to be sent to people behind bars across the United States (article available here). The legislation, known as the CARES Act, passed in March that authorized the payments of up to $1,200 per person during the pandemic does not specifically exclude inmates. But the IRS later determined incarcerated people were ineligible, telling prison officials to intercept any checks that arrived at prisons or jails, and to return them to the federal government. They also instructed people who had already received checks to mail them back.
Living behind bars is expensive for inmates and their families. A 15-minute phone call with family members can cost more than $20 in some states, and inmates often must buy additional food to meet their nutritional needs. In many correction systems they also must purchase their own personal hygiene items such as soap, shampoo and cleaning supplies — a need that is even greater during the coronavirus pandemic. Prison and jail jobs can be hard to get and typically only pay cents on the dollar, so much of the financial burden falls on inmates’ friends and family members — who may already be dealing with the loss of an income provider in addition to pandemic-related job losses and illness.
“Incarcerated persons who otherwise qualify for an advance refund are not excluded as an ‘eligible individual,’” the Court wrote in the ruling. “The IRS’s decision to exclude incarcerated persons from advance refund payments is likely contrary to law.”
People who do not file taxes and have not received a stimulus check can submit their information through the IRS Non-Filers Tool. The deadline for this was extended by the IRS to November 21, 2020. Americans with income below $12,200 and who have not filed a tax return for 2018 and 2019 can use the tool to add basic personal information to receive the payment.