Today is every American’s favorite holiday – Tax Day. It’s usually April 15, but that was Sunday, and it can’t be April 16 because that’s a holiday in Washington, D.C. (Emancipation Day). So April 17 it is.

Like many people, I like getting a tax refund every year. Unfortunately, that means I’m always subject to abuse from holier-than-thou amateur economists. “You just gave an interest-free loan to the government!” they scoff. “It was your money the whole time. You’re a fool!”

Well, sure. But there are reasons lots of Americans don’t follow that advice, the WSJ’s David Wessel explains:

Last year, the Internal Revenue Service refunded $300 billion, or 25 cents for every $1 it collected. More than 80% of the 143 million returns filed resulted in a refund.

Paying more in taxes during the year than one actually owes amounts to an interest-free loan to the government. Economists used to consider it irrational: The smart thing to do is reduce withholding to come close to matching one’s tax obligation.

But new evidence — and insights from behavioral economists — challenge that view and suggest that many people, particularly lower-income Americans, use the tax system to force themselves to save. Now, the government is looking for ways to take advantage of what Mark Iwry, the Treasury point man on saving and retirement issues, calls “savable moments.”

“People want to have a ready way to save,” says Michael Barr, a University of Michigan law professor and a former Obama and Clinton Treasury official. “For some families, tax time is a good time to do so.”

During World War II, when tax withholding was reintroduced, the Roosevelt administration paid Disney to make a propaganda cartoon with Donald Duck exhorting people to pay their taxes on time or else risk giving aid and comfort to the Nazis. Would a “Family Guy” cartoon have the same effect today? You decide:

Want to check the status of your refund? The IRS will update you here and Rhode Island will update you here.