From cbsnews.com
“Parts of the government that were shut for 35 days are now open again – at least for the next three weeks. According to Standard & Poor’s, the shutdown has cost the U.S. economy $6 billion – more than the $5.7 billion President Trump requested for the border wall that’s at the heart of this dispute.
The federal watchdog National Taxpayer Advocate determined it could take the IRS at least a year to get back to normal after five million pieces of mail went unopened during the shutdown, reports CBS News correspondent Nancy Cordes. In the first week of tax season, the IRS is struggling to get Americans their refunds on time.
“It’s going to be massive catch up at this point,” Michelle Harris of the IRS said. She is one of thousands of IRS workers who were furloughed for 35 days. She put off emergency dental work and car repairs in the last month and still hasn’t gotten her back pay.
Harris said some of her colleagues quit.
“I know that it was more than people could handle and they put in their notice,” Harris said. “I don’t blame ’em.””
Read the full story at cbsnews.com
