Fed & state returns are processed by totally separate taxing authorities and CA did it faster and they have millions of returns less to deal with. The feds this year have a lot more human reviews they have had to deal with which is putting them behind as they are still short staffed.
Go to this IRS website for operational status - https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-operations-during-covid-19-mission-critical-functions-continue
As of June 23, 2021, we had 17.5 million unprocessed individual returns in the pipeline. Unprocessed returns include tax year 2020 returns such as those requiring correction to the Recovery Rebate Credit amount or validation of 2019 income used to figure the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC). This work does not require us to correspond with taxpayers but does require special handling by an IRS employee so, in these instances, it is taking the IRS more than 21 days to issue any related refund. If, as a result, a correction is made to any RRC, EITC or ACTC claimed on the return, the IRS will send taxpayers an explanation. Taxpayers are encouraged to continue to check Where’s My Refund? for their personalized refund status and can review Tax Season Refund Frequently Asked Questions.
