News Release
January 17, 2002 - Columbus, Ohio
- Ohio Tax Amnesty Program Counts
Success
COLUMBUS – Ohio Tax Commissioner Thomas M. Zaino today
called the estimated $22.2 million collected in the state’s
first ever Tax Amnesty Program a victory for Ohio taxpayers
and for state and local governments.
The tax amnesty program ended Tuesday, January
15th with the Ohio Department of Taxation (ODT)
reporting an end-of-day, preliminary total of $22,233,913.
That figure does not include money collected this week at
regional Taxpayer Service Centers or amnesty payments still
in the mail. ODT estimated that amnesty would generate $17
million and another $5 million annually in years to come from
newly enrolled taxpayers.
"I want to thank all those who came forward to take advantage
of this program," Zaino said. "The money they paid already
was due and owing, and it will strengthen the many state and
local government services we all benefit from. And, it will
do it without raising taxes for the rest of us who pay our
taxes when we’re supposed to."
The tax amnesty program started Oct. 15. It was offered for
individual income, sales, personal property, school district
income, school district withholding, corporate franchise,
employer withholding, pass-through entity, public utility
excise and sales and use tax. Amnesty also was only available
to taxes owed on or before May 1, 2001 and to taxpayers whose
liabilities were unknown to the Ohio Department of Taxation
(ODT).
Final numbers were still being tabulated by the ODT, which
conducted the program, but Zaino said he expects most of the
revenue collected will come from the individual income tax,
followed by sales tax. Zaino encouraged those who missed the
tax amnesty program but still have state tax problems to go
ahead and contact the ODT for help in getting those problems
resolved."Tax problems do not go away," he said. "They can
just get worse. We can’t give amnesty anymore, but we will
work with taxpayers with problems."
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Contact: Gary Gudmundson, Ohio Department of Taxation, (614)
644-6903.