Judge certifies class of inmates seeking Covid relief checks

A federal court granted class certification to prisoners who alleged federal entities illegally withheld coronavirus stimulus checks from them. The same order also granted the prisoners' request for a preliminary injunction against the state entities, requiring the latter to issue checks to prisoners who had been excluded from the benefits solely because they were incarcerated.

The defendants - which include the U.S. Department of Treasury, department secretary Steven Mnuchin, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Commissioner of Internal Revenue Charles Rettig, and the federal government - have 30 days from Sept. 24 to reconsider advance refund payments to prisoners who are entitled to checks based on their 2018 and 2019 tax returns. The defendants have the same deadline to reconsider claims that were previously denied solely because they were filed by prisoners.

Within 45 days of Sept. 24, the defendants must file a declaration reporting the number and amount of benefits they've distributed to prisoners.

The federal entities filed a motion to stay the preliminary injunction last week, and are appealing the order. Colin Scholl, et al v. Steven Mnuchin, et al., 20-16915 (9th Cir., filed Aug. 1, 2020).

The plaintiffs, a prisoner at Salinas Valley State Prison and a former prisoner San Quentin State Prison who was released in July, filed the suit in August through Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP and the Equal Justice Society.

The complaint alleged the federal CARES Act, under which eligible individuals received payments up to $1,200 during the pandemic, did not explicitly exclude prisoners.

"The statute mandates distribution of the advance refund to eligible individuals," read the Sept. 24 order from U.S. District Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton. "Incarcerated persons who otherwise qualify for an advance refund are not excluded as an 'eligible individual.' The IRS's decision to exclude incarcerated persons from advance refund payments is likely contrary to law."

-- Jessica Mach