There was a period of time when the US Dept of State was way backed up, and it could take months to get a passport. But with some planning ahead, and making sure you renew well ahead of time, it wasn't that bad having to wait. We got passports for the kids in March of this year, and it honestly wasn't that bad now. We got the passports about 4 weeks later, and we got back our kid's birth certificates back about 2 weeks after our passports came in. The only thing I'd say about that is, weekend slots fill up fast. So if you're doing it for kids, you may want to schedule ahead during summer, or you may need to pull them out of school for a few hours during a weekday.
For those with emergencies, you can attempt to make an appointment at an official passport facility run by the State Dept, and you can get a passport in as little as 72 hours. Appointments fill up quick. You'd need to be lucky enough to be able to schedule an appointment though. And have a completed application with all necessary documents for the passport, as well as proof of emergency.