Hundreds of thousands of Americans will not receive their full tax refunds this year due to debts from their deceased parents and other relatives. The Washington Post, NPR, and other outlets have reported on a story about an obscure new rule that allows the IRS to seize the tax refunds.
In some cases, the IRS has been unable to explain who the debt even belonged to, aside from saying that it was from overpayment from social security to a deceased relative.
This is unacceptable public policy and needs to end.