U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) and U.S. Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) are urging the IRS to extend the deadline for filing federal income taxes and waive penalties for late returns for North Dakota residents after the state was walloped by a record-breaking blizzard last week.
The blizzard that dropped snow totaling more than two feet in several areas shut down much of North Dakota.
“This serious weather event has made it very difficult or impossible for many taxpayers and tax professionals to meet the April 18th filing deadline,” Sen. Hoeven and Rep. Armstrong wrote in an April 15 letter to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig.
The lawmakers noted in their letter that the North Dakota Tax Commissioner extended the state income tax deadline until April 25 and waived penalties and interest for late returns. Conditions in North Dakota are more severe than storms that hit parts of the South and Midwest in 2013 when the IRS granted similar relief.
“North Dakotans’ immediate priorities in this emergency should be to dig out and ensure their fellow community members are safe. We urge the IRS to follow the 2013 precedent and provide the same relief to North Dakotans fighting this current blizzard,” the lawmakers wrote.
“We are ready to work with the IRS to ensure that this relief is appropriately applied, so North Dakotans have a reasonable opportunity to meet federal income tax obligations,” Sen. Hoeven and Rep. Armstrong concluded in the letter, which was also signed by U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND).