A pushed-to-the-limit Internal Revenue Service and perplexing tax rules are leaving millions of taxpayers waiting and wondering just when they'll get their hands on much-needed tax refund cash.
For some early filers, the wait for a tax refund has been six weeks to eight weeks already — far longer than a typical wait of 21 days or less — after filing their 2020 income tax returns in February or March.
"Is the car going to break down before the money gets here?" asked Tonya Williams, 69, a Flint widow who is raising her two grandchildren.
The mother of her granddaughter died at age 38 in 2016. The father of her grandson is in prison. Her husband died in August 2020.