According to friends in the public information office of the Internal Revenue Service (yeah, I said it, “friends” and “IRS” in the same sentence), taxpayers in counties declared federal disaster areas may be eligible for a host of tax relief programs.
Residents and businesses impacted by wildfire damage in 14 counties – including Bastrop, Travis, and Williamson – may qualify for tax relief – including the postponement of certain filing dates and tax payments due this fall.
The IRS will also waive fees and expedite processing of requests for copies of previous returns that might have been lost in the fire.
The agency also notes that taxpayers in federal disaster areas have the option of claiming disaster-related losses on either the current year or previous year’s tax returns. Putting the loss on an amended return for the previous year may expedite the return of funds, while claiming it on the current year’s returns may result in larger tax savings, the agency reports.
You can find information on all disaster-relief-related tax matters, here.
This article appears in September 16 • 2011.