Senator calls for Justice Department to investigate IRS sending stimulus checks to dead people

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is asking the Justice Department to investigate the coronavirus stimulus checks being sent to deceased Americans but still supports another round of direct payments in a future stimulus package.

The New York Democrat said Thursday that she's calling for the investigation following reports this week by Just the News and others about some of the payments being mailed or transferred into the bank accounts of deceased Americans, in part because payments are based on data from 2018 tax filings if a 2019 filing has yet to be received. 

The Trump administration quickly put together the distribution process to help Americans financially hit by the virus. However, the fast process has also resulted in several problems including payments to the deceased and some people not being able to update the bank account information used for their 2018 tax returns, which has caused the IRS to deposit stimulus payments in the wrong accounts. 

Democrat leaders including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have called for more direct payments to be included in any future coronavirus stimulus package.

Gillibrand was asked if she is skeptical of supporting future direct payments in another COVID-19 economic relief bill given reports of stimulus payments made in error.

“No, I think it's important that we send money directly to taxpayers for the duration of the pandemic," she said. "Right now, we have 20 million people who filed for unemployment. There's millions more who are still trying to file for unemployment and may not have gotten through.”

“If there are examples of fraud, corruption or mistakes, those should be investigated and we should get to the bottom of it. But it doesn't mean the money isn't useful to other people who desperately need it,” she also said, on a coronavirus conference call with Rep. Antonio Delgado (D-N.Y.)

Delgado said he still supports more direct payments in the next COVID-19 legislation Congress passes, despite reports of payments made in error.

“I don't think you throw the baby out with the bathwater in this situation,” he said. “The amount that we actually provided in the CARES Act is just the first step. We're going to have to continue to build upon that to really help families through these difficult times.”

The IRS had no comment when Just the News asked how it plans to recoup the stimulus payments sent to deceased people's accounts.

Gillibrand, who voted in favor of the CARES Act, was asked how she thinks the government will be able to get the money back that the IRS has sent out in error.

“Those can be simple fraud investigations that the Department of Justice can do. It's the same as tax fraud. So we investigate tax fraud every year and they find people who breach tax laws,” she said.

“So I don't think it would be handled any more differently than that and we should actively, of course, encourage the Department of Justice to investigate any instances of tax fraud.”