Md. Comptroller says it’s best to file on line.
Md. Comptroller Brook Lierman (photo from the State of Maryland)
Annapolis, Md (KM) The April 15th deadline to file your state and federal income tax returns is less than two weeks away. And if you haven’t started yet, Comptroller Brooke Lierman says don’t panic. She says get all of your documents in order, sit down at your computer and start working. “Any withholding, documents, any other income, health insurance, any donations you’ve made,” she says. “Keep all of that together. Sit down and check out I-File so you can do it for free.”
If you run into some problems doing your state income taxes, Lierman says contact the Comptroller’s Office and make an appointment at one of the branch offices for help. There is one in Frederick near the Court House at the corner of Court and Church Streets. She says bring along a completed federal income tax return. “We will help folks. We don’t all of it, but we certainly will help folks and guide them through the process,” Lierman says.
You can make your appointment through marylandtaxes.gov.
If you’re doing your tax return yourself, Lierman says it’s best to do it on line. “That is the fastest way to process a return. That insures that our taxpayers receive all credits for which they’re eligible, and it avoids Postal Service delays,” she says.
Filing a paper return could cause some delays. “We have people who are focused right now on opening envelopes, thousands and thousands of envelopes,” says Lierman. “You can’t track that tax return until we enter it into a system, and because of security protocols, that could take quite a while. So there’s a big time difference between when you get your refund when you file on line, versus filing in paper.”
And when you file on line, Lierman says the Comptroller’s Office offers free filing through I-File which can be accessed on the agency’s website.
So far this year, Lierman says, the Comptroller’s Office has processed one-and-a-half million tax returns, and sent out close to one-and-a-half billion dollars in refunds.
By Kevin McManus
