Tax experts explain how government shutdown could impact tax refunds
EL PASO, Texas — The federal government has been in a partial shutdown for more than two weeks. It has some tax experts worried for what will happen once people submit their W-2 forms.
"The time frame in which they receive their refund will be delayed, depending on how long the government is shut down,” Jesse Valdez, a tax consultant at Tejanito Tax and Financial, said.
Valdez said the delay could derail some financial plans for some people.
"A lot of people, they rely on the refund for, you know, paying bills off or going on vacation or paying for necessities,” Valdez said. “Essentially, not having your refund could have a huge negative impact on a lot of people."
He recommends people still file their income tax returns as early as possible, regardless of the government shutdown.
Valdez's offices are also able to offer people refund advances for a price if they file their tax returns early.
Some people KFOX14/CBS4 spoke with said they need their refunds for their families.
"I have two kids, so it usually goes back into the kids, driving them to school,” Ramon Rivera said. “Like right now, I need to fix my car, so I was counting on that to get it fixed."
"There's things that are missing that I need for my household at that time, especially for my kids,” Jim Coleman said. “I use that to give me a boost economically, as far as they might need things for the rest of the school year."
There are others who are confident they'll be able to see that refund sooner rather than later.
"It's a little bit frustrating that they can't get their act together, but they always manage to at the last minute,” David Durinzo said. “People end up (getting) the money that's coming to them. They'll figure it out eventually here before the ninth hours."
As a friendly reminder, Tax Day is still on April 15. The shutdown hasn’t changed that.
