By Rep. JOHN BOEHNER Ohio’s Eighth Congressional District
At the beginning of this year, Congress worked together in a bipartisan way to create a legislative package that would help to spur our economy by letting Americans keep more of the money they earn instead of letting Washington spend it.
Economic stimulus checks, for those who met certain criteria, were part of the package, and eligible taxpayers should have received their rebate checks by now.
If you got a refund from your 2007 federal taxes, your check was either direct deposited into your bank account or was mailed.
If you did not receive a refund, your stimulus check either has been mailed or will be mailed soon.
The IRS' Web site, www.irs.gov, has information regarding when checks were due to be mailed as well as a "calculator" that will tell you the amount of your economic stimulus check.
In June, Congress took further action under the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (H.R. 6081, "The Heart Act") to let married couples filing jointly where at least one spouse was a member of the armed forces at any time during the year receive an economic stimulus check. The IRS estimates there are more than 10,000 American military families who will now receive a rebate check.
For affected married couples who have already filed a joint return, no further action is necessary.
For those who have not yet filed, they should do so as soon as possible. Married couples filing joint returns who are now eligible to receive a rebate check under this new law will receive notice from the IRS that will include the rebate amount. These rebate payments are expected to be made in November.
While the IRS has already issued 76.5 million rebate payments worth $63.8 billion based on 2007 tax returns already processed, there are still nearly 48 million eligible Americans who have not yet filed the paperwork necessary to receive one.
Among those are low-income senior citizens and disabled veterans who normally do not have to file tax returns. In Ohio, there are roughly 227,000 individuals eligible for a rebate check who have not yet filed, according to the IRS.
Although the IRS was unable to provide data for Preble, Montgomery and Butler counties, data for Darke, Mercer and Miami counties indicate that there are more than 3,200 low-income seniors, disabled veterans and others who could lose out on this opportunity.
If you know someone who falls into the following categories, please ask if they have filed a 2007 tax return: Social Security recipients including retirement income, disability income and survivor payments; Veterans Affairs beneficiaries including disability compensation, disability pension and survivor payments; Railroad Retirement payments including the Social Security equivalent portion of Tier 1 benefits.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is not qualifying income. Eligible individuals, including their children, must have valid Social Security numbers and cannot be claimed or be eligible to be claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return.
Non-citizens and illegal immigrants are not eligible, and filing a false tax form is a federal crime.
Filing a tax return to get a stimulus check is a very easy process if you qualify.
Filers or tax preparers should write "Stimulus Payment" across the top of the 1040A form, which can be printed off the IRS website. Fill out the "Label" section with name, address and Social Security number.
Check the appropriate box for filing status - single, married, etc. In Box 14a, fill in estimated or actual 2007 Social Security or other appropriate income and also complete lines 44b, 44c and 44d. Finally, sign and return the form by Oct. 15 to: Department of the Treasury; Internal Revenue Service Center; Kansas City, Mo., 64999-0099.
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Rep. John Boehner, R- West Chester, represents Ohio's Eighth Congressional District.
