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Here’s one phone message that apparently is having trouble getting through.
During a recent three-week period, 93,000 Oregonians who filed their federal tax returns failed to ask for a refund of a telephone luxury tax that had been collected since the Spanish-American War. The number represents one-third of all of the returns filed by state residents so far.
Last August, the Treasury Department stopped collecting the tax following rulings in a series of lawsuits filed by companies that had challenged the tax.
Telephone company customers who paid the tax between Feb. 28, 2003, and July 31, 2006, are eligible for a one-time refund on their federal returns. Taxpayers are eligible for a refund of between $30 and $60, depending upon the size of the household.
The 93,000 Oregon residents who failed to ask for the refund during the recent survey period lost out on a minimum of $2.8 million.
No records are needed to file for the standard refund. Taxpayers who paid more than the standard amount through the 3 percent tax on telephone service during the three-year period can file for a larger amount.
David Bartlett, who coordinates local tax aid clinics sponsored by the RSVP program and the AARP, said most people who have come for assistance seem to be aware of the telephone tax refund.
The tax preparation software used by the program’s volunteers has a default that provides the individual taxpayer with that refund. It’s among a list of questions assistants ask the taxpayer.
“It’s a very rare person who in the last three and a half years hasn’t had a cell phone or land line,” he said.
On a paper return, using Form 1040, the refund is requested on Line 71.
Taxpayers who filed a return and failed to ask for the refund can file an amended return. Those who filed electronically and their return has been accepted by the Internal Revenue Service, should be able to use their tax preparation software or online service to submit the amended return immediately.
Bill Steiner, an IRS spokesman in Sacramento, Calif., suggests that people who filed a paper return wait four to six weeks before filing the amended return.
Taxpayers have until April 17 to file returns this year. April 15, the traditional deadline, falls on a Sunday and the following day is a holiday in parts of the East Coast.
Federal forms and other information is available on the IRS Web site at www.irs.gov.
• You can reach reporter John Sowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@newsreview.info.
During a recent three-week period, 93,000 Oregonians who filed their federal tax returns failed to ask for a refund of a telephone luxury tax that had been collected since the Spanish-American War. The number represents one-third of all of the returns filed by state residents so far.
Last August, the Treasury Department stopped collecting the tax following rulings in a series of lawsuits filed by companies that had challenged the tax.
Telephone company customers who paid the tax between Feb. 28, 2003, and July 31, 2006, are eligible for a one-time refund on their federal returns. Taxpayers are eligible for a refund of between $30 and $60, depending upon the size of the household.
The 93,000 Oregon residents who failed to ask for the refund during the recent survey period lost out on a minimum of $2.8 million.
No records are needed to file for the standard refund. Taxpayers who paid more than the standard amount through the 3 percent tax on telephone service during the three-year period can file for a larger amount.
David Bartlett, who coordinates local tax aid clinics sponsored by the RSVP program and the AARP, said most people who have come for assistance seem to be aware of the telephone tax refund.
The tax preparation software used by the program’s volunteers has a default that provides the individual taxpayer with that refund. It’s among a list of questions assistants ask the taxpayer.
“It’s a very rare person who in the last three and a half years hasn’t had a cell phone or land line,” he said.
On a paper return, using Form 1040, the refund is requested on Line 71.
Taxpayers who filed a return and failed to ask for the refund can file an amended return. Those who filed electronically and their return has been accepted by the Internal Revenue Service, should be able to use their tax preparation software or online service to submit the amended return immediately.
Bill Steiner, an IRS spokesman in Sacramento, Calif., suggests that people who filed a paper return wait four to six weeks before filing the amended return.
Taxpayers have until April 17 to file returns this year. April 15, the traditional deadline, falls on a Sunday and the following day is a holiday in parts of the East Coast.
Federal forms and other information is available on the IRS Web site at www.irs.gov.
• You can reach reporter John Sowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@newsreview.info.
