HUNTSVILLE, AL—
Still waiting on your state income tax return? It appears you are not alone. Thousands of your fellow Alabamians are in the same boat.For months, many of you have been calling and writing WHNT News 19 to ask, "where is my Alabama tax refund?" We did some digging.
Millions of dollars in refunds have been paid to Alabamians, but the state still owes some. It's been nearly four months since the tax deadline. Alabama has paid some taxpayers more than half a billion dollars in tax refunds. For others, the state hasn't paid them a dime.
You've heard it before, but tonight, WHNT News 19 can tell you-- the Alabama Department of Revenue says the check is in the mail for some of you.
Money, money, money. You can't live without it, and right now with the economy the way it is, some people need it more than ever.
We have a few emails from people all over. All of them are like many other Alabamians who have been waiting for months to get their tax refund.
The Alabama Department of Revenue blames the state tax refund delay on the poor economy.
"That slowed down the pace, or the turnaround time on getting refunds out to taxpayers this year, " Alabama Department of Revenue Spokesperson Carla Snellgrove.
More than a million Alabama taxpayers have received their refunds. The state has shelled out about $611 million dollars in tax refunds so far, but some of our neighbors are still waiting.
"The cash flow situation has been very difficult to work with this year. It's been very difficult for taxpayers i'm sure to understand," added Snellgrove.
The Department of Revenue says it failed to process 50,000 tax claims as of July 15,2009. July 15 is 90 days from the tax deadline. The 90 day window allows the state a good time frame to give refunds. Refunds not sent by July 15 will earn interest. The internal revenue service sets that rate 4% percent.
The Alabama Department of Revenue says it has only 25,000 claims left to process as of August 11, 2009. It says more should be mailed soon.
No specific date could be determined as to when the remaining 25,000 taxpayers should expect their refund to be put into the mail. The mailing date is based on the state's cash flow situation. You can track your state income tax return with the Alabama State Department of Revenue by clicking here.
