<prompt> Human: Last year I made 23,681.00. Federal income tax withheld: 4,422. My federal refund was 1,866.00, and my state refund was 144.00.This year I made 65, 971. Federal income tax withheld 11,400. My federal refund is going to be 1,612 and my state will be 409.00. Ive also paid around 1,800 dollars in college loan interest which Ive added to TurboTax.Im filing as a single independent with no dependents.Does anyone have any idea why Im getting back basically the same amount even though I made more and was taxed more and Ive paid college loan interest?? I know very little about taxes and I can seem to figure out whats going on here! Any help is much appreciated! Thank you!!  <response>: Welcome to the world of progressive taxation.Your refund size is not an indicator of how much you were taxed. You could withhold more throughout the year but have smaller paychecks and get a bigger refund. Or withhold less and get a smaller refund but have slightly bigger paychecks. 