Vermont joins the AMNESTY party. What do I mean? I mean the Vermont legislature has passed the Fiscal Year 2010 Appropriations Act (H.B. 441, Laws 2009, effective June 2, 2009, unless otherwise noted).
The act makes several changes involving the cigarette and tobacco products tax, the education property tax, homestead declarations, property tax exemption, transferring abandoned property to satisfy tax liability, and the estate tax.
Amnesty Program (sometime prior to October 2, 2009)
However, the main change I want to mention is in regards to amnesty. Under the act, the state tax commissioner must hold a six-week amnesty program prior to October 2, 2009.
Benefits of Program?
All penalties will be waived without requiring the taxpayer to show reasonable cause or the absence of willful neglect as long as the taxpayer files all returns and pays all taxes and interest due.
What Tax Types Does the Program Apply to?
According to the act, the program will apply to any tax for any period for which the due date of the return was before January 26, 2009.
Despite the broad application, there are some exceptions regarding penalties, fuel taxes and local option portions of taxes.
Interpretation and Application
If you have back tax liabilities in Vermont and haven't taken care of them yet. Take the time to get that information in order so you are prepared when the amnesty is put into effect. Also, this may be a good time to determine if amnesty will be the correct avenue to utilize to resolve those back taxes.
If you have any questions, please contact me at leveragesalt@earthlink.net.
