An Arizona state personal income tax form is shown Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Jefferson City, Mo. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb)2026-04-15T12:03:16Z WASHINGTON (AP) Its Tax Day on Wednesday, the deadline for most Americans to file taxes, and the Trump administration says millions of people have already used new breaks such as no tax on tips and overtime, exemptions for interest on certain car loans, deductions for some seniors, and Trump Accounts for childrens savings.More than 53 million filers claimed a deduction under one of those provisions from Republicans massive tax and spending law, a Treasury official told reporters Tuesday ahead of the deadline, with 6 million people claiming no tax on tips, 21 million claiming the overtime deduction and 30 million older Americans claiming the enhanced deduction. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to preview the numbers, said the 2026 filing season was a success from the administrations perspective.Still, the latest data comes as most Americans, or 7 in 10, still think their taxes are too high, according to recent polling, despite the passage of the Republican tax law which promised big savings for taxpayers. As the tax season kicked off in January, the White House boasted that average returns were projected to rise by at least $1,000. But currently, the average refund amount is $3,462, according to the latest IRS data, which is up 11% or about $350 from last tax years $3,116 average refund payment. Treasury has shifted its messaging to tout that tax refunds this season are up 24% compared with the four-year average of refunds before President Donald Trump took office. Read More The White House has been trying to promote Trumps tax cuts as a way to get voters more enthusiastic about the way hes handling the economy ahead of Novembers midterm elections, but the message has been overshadowed for weeks by higher gas prices caused by the war in Iran. The 2026 season comes as the IRS has gone through a leadership turnover and reduced its workforce by 27% over the past year through cuts brought on by the Department of Government Efficiency. IRS CEO Frank Bisignano is set to testify in front of the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday. In his public testimony to lawmakers, Bisignano planned to tout the IRS implementation of the Republican tax law. However, Democratic lawmakers zeroed in on IRS disclosures of confidential taxpayer information to Immigration and Customs Enforcement as part of an agreement between ICE and the Department of Homeland Security to share information for the purpose of identifying and deporting people illegally in the U.S. FATIMA HUSSEIN Hussein reports on the U.S. Treasury Department for The Associated Press. She covers tax policy, sanctions and any issue that relates to money. twitter mailto