No date set yet for release of rebate checks

The Department of Finance has deposited between $15 million to $17 million to a trust account that will be used to pay out rebates and refunds to more than 30,000 taxpayers in the CNMI.

But Finance Sec. Lucy DLG. Nielsen disclosed the department has yet to set the date for the release of the checks, saying only that they are on target in their tax collection.

“I can’t tell for sure [when] because it’s a new tax system,” she told reporters yesterday.
“We have various tax projects ongoing and this is the year we are going to implement them. We have been doing checks once to make sure that it works. We are hoping and we are crossing our fingers.”

Although filing of income tax returns ended on Monday, Ms. Nielsen said the department will still be accepting documents from taxpayers who are unable to beat the deadline.

However, she said there is penalty for filing the tax returns late and interests will start accruing each day of delay.

The department has adopted a policy of “first-filed, first-out” for the orderly release of rebate checks for the past two years since the special rebate trust account was almost emptied during the previous administration.

When Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio assumed office in January 1998, the Transition Committee had uncovered that the special trust fund dipped to $2 million when it should have been at $31 million as of end-1997.

The government coughed out about $30 million in total rebate and refund checks for both individual and corporate taxpayers last year.

Since 1998, finance officials have had to reassure the public on the ability of the government to meet its commitment to taxpayers due to the financial difficulties confronting the administration.

The government’s issuance of rebate checks was delayed for more than two months during the last tax year. In 1998, the first batch of rebates was released in August when it was usually mailed out during the month of May.

The delay was apparently caused by the unavailability of income tax return forms which were issued only in April. The finance department usually segregated the tax returns filed by those who have outstanding financial liability to the government.

With the new system in place, the department is hoping to have a timely and orderly release of rebates and refunds by minimizing deficiencies in the tax returns.

Mr. Tenorio has consistently assured that all rebate checks will be out by October, or before the mandated deadline, as payment of these is guaranteed under the Constitution.

He has instructed the government’s financial managers to set available funds to the special account in order to ensure that the money will be available.