The GAO said that the payments to dead people came as Treasury and the IRS rushed to disburse some 160.4 million of these payments totaling $269 billion after the Cares Act was passed in March. The IRS has previously said that stimulus payments issued in the name of dead people have to be returned. But aside from announcing on its website on May 6 that stimulus payments made to dead or incarcerated individuals should be returned, the IRS does not have plans to take additional steps toward recouping the payments, GAO said. ADADThe Cares Act directed the stimulus payments to people who filed a 2018 or 2019 tax return. The report contains multiple findings and recommendations on a wide array of issues apart from the direct stimulus payments.

Source: Washington Post June 25, 2020 14:02 UTC