http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-878188.mp3
Topeka, KS – Kansans settled into the old ways of filing tax returns are being given a sobering caveat . Budget woes have caught up with the state revenue department and obvious signs are near at hand.
If you hadn't thought electronic filing had come of serious age, listen to Freda Warfield of the Kansas Revenue Department. She's talking about filers who expect refunds when she says--"If they file electronically and have direct deposit, they can expect a refund in five to seven days. Individuals who still file by paper and are expecting a refund, it can take up to 16 weeks this year." Four months to get that money the state is holding for you.
Warfield says budget reductions haven't allowed hiring of temporary staff who usually open envelopes arriving by mail. More than 400,000 Kansans filed by paper last year. More than a million did it electronically. State figures show more tax preparers are using the electronic method in recent years.
To further discourage paper filing, the Kansas Revenue Department won't be mailing tax forms to more than 850 banks, libraries and other sites where Kansans have traditionally found them .