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By William M. Welch~USA Today
Residents eager to get their state tax refunds may have a long wait this year: The recession has tied up cash and caused officials in half a dozen states to consider freezing refunds, in one case for as long as five months.
States from New York to Hawaii that have been hard-hit by the economic downturn say they have either delayed refunds or are considering doing so because of budget shortfalls.
“It’s an indicator of how bad it is,” says Scott Pattison, executive director of the National Association of State Budget Officers. “You know things are bad when you have to do that.”
New York, hit with a $9 billion deficit, may delay $500 million in refunds to keep the state from running out of cash, says Gov. David Paterson.
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- Kansas Suspending Income Tax Refunds, May Miss Payroll
- New York State Tax Refunds Put On Hold
- 29 States Faced Total Budget Shortfall of at Least $48 Billion in 2009
- States on the brink of a budget crisis
- 46 Of 50 States Could File Bankruptcy In 2009-2010
- Bad economies in states to worsen: governors
Isn’t that theft? they have a citizens money and fail to return it at an agreed upon time table. Funny how governments can alter the laws to suit themselves. They have money that is NOT THEIRS, once they are notified via tax returns they need to return the money or face legal action on theft. If the people can not do this why do they think they can? At an absolute minimum the states should be required to pay interest on the frozen funds. Hey you broke ass states, heard of bonds? Oh, thats right you pillaged your treasuries and miss managed your state so poorly trying to make it a socialist utopia no sane bank will loan you a pencil…….
You can not erase poverty, you can distroy a great nation…. do the right thing…… Reintroduce yourselves to your state’s and your nation’s constitution.
And how long before the taxpayer whose refund is delayed is just another unsecured creditor of the bankrupt state?
BTW, Delvin, this isn’t socialism. Socialism would socialize BOTH the profits and losses, right now “our leaders” are only socializing the later in a system designed to diversify investment risks this amounts to theft from the people to provide profits to those who were chosen to succeed by their beneficiaries, ie theft. Its really more a Corporatism, which Mussolini called Fascism. But with the later we typically think of more governmental power, so perhaps this is Neo-fascism.
…or Bush I would say,”kinder gentler fascism”
That fractional reserve banking thingy did work out so well…at least not for the taxpayer. Goldman and others are on top of the world. What’s happening in Greece(and soon to be others) is just the tip of the tip of the iceberg. “Socialism is great until you run out of taxpayer money”(and credit)–Margaret Thatcher. The contry is bankrupt (Chapter 7) and the buzzard bankers are ready for the harvest.