Residents in a three county flood disaster area of West Central Illinois are now eligible for state tax waivers.
Governor J.B. Pritzker announced today, individuals and businesses devastated by severe weather and flooding that began in Mid-May, can now request waivers of penalties and interest on state taxes, if they cannot file their returns or make payments on time.
On Thursday Pritzker declared Morgan, Pike, and Scott counties flood disaster areas, and called up members of the National Guard to assist in flood mitigation efforts.
Those impacted in the disaster areas are eligible to request a waiver of penalties and interest for income taxes, withholding taxes, sales taxes, and specialty and excise taxes.
In the announcement this morning, Pritzker says the state is strongly urging Illinoisans to take precautions and safely evacuate if necessary, and know the state will wave penalties for impacted filers who need more time.
Taxpayers seeking waivers of penalties and interest for taxes should send a brief written explanation of why they cannot timely file or pay to the Illinois Department of Revenue.
IDOR officials say taxpayers should provide their full name, account number, mailing address, and an estimate of when they believe they can file or pay their taxes. Those who are using a Social Security number are advised to only include the last four digits.
Requests may be sent electronically to REV.DisasterRelief@illinois.gov or via postal mail using the address on the return.
Taxpayers who mail their request to IDOR should write Flood – Spring 2020 on the top of the return in red and include their explanation for penalties and interest abatement request.
Property owners who may have been impacted by the flooding in the four declared counties should contact their county Supervisor of Assessments office if they wish to apply for reassessment due to any property damage.
Grundy County located south west of Chicago was also included in the disaster declaration yesterday.