The INDEPENDENT, March 18, 2004
Page 5
Business Notes
Tax tips on child care credit and using direct deposit for refunds
Maximize your Child Faster Refunds
Want to receive your Oregon
Care Credit
You could get a larger Ore
gon refund this year if you qual
ify for the working family child
care credit.
Starting this year, this credit
for low-income families with
child care expenses will be re
fundable. This means that, if
the credit is more than your tax,
you will receive the difference
as a refund.
To claim the credit, you will
need to fill out the new Oregon
Schedule WFC, which will help
you determine if you qualify.
The new schedule also will help
you calculate your credit. You
must send in Schedule WFC
with your Oregon tax return to
receive the credit. The sched
ule is included in your Oregon
tax booklet or online at
<www.dor.state.or.us>.
tax refund more quickly and
save a trip to the bank? Re
questing direct deposit on your
Oregon tax return means your
refund will be deposited directly
into your account at a bank or
other financial institution that
you designate. Direct deposit is
secure and simple to use.
Last year, over 384,000 Ore
gon taxpayers used direct de
posit. To request direct deposit,
you’ll need to enter your ac
count number and bank’s rout
ing number on you Oregon tax
return. You’ll find these num
bers at the bottom of one of
your checks, or contact your
bank to get the numbers. The
Oregon Department of Rev
enue does not notify taxpayers
when a deposit is made, so you
will need to check your account
six to eight weeks after filing
your return to confirm receipt.
If for some reason your di
rect deposit is rejected by the
bank, the department will send
a check to the address on your
tax return.
For more information, visit
<www.dora.state.or.us/tax> or
contact the Oregon Department
of Revenue at 503-378-4988 or
1-800-356-4222.
April 1 deadline for selection of tax
method for timber land owners
April 1 is the deadline for
owners of 10 to 5,000 acres of
forestland to select one of two
property tax methods created
by the 2003 Oregon Legisla
ture. The choice of method
could affect the amount of
property tax they will pay for
2004 and beyond.
The two methods are:
Forestland Program: All
owners with more than two
acres of forestland will be auto
matically transferred to the new
Forestland Program. Land is
taxed at a special value based
on the typical price paid for
land that is managed to pro
duce harvestable timber. No
privilege tax is paid when the
timber is harvested. Owners
who decide to stay in the pro
gram do not have to take any
action.
Small Tract
Forestland
Volunteer needed on
surface mining panel
The Columbia County Board
of Commissioners is soliciting
applicants for the Columbia
County Surface Mining Com
mittee. If interested, call the
Board of Commissioners office
at 503-397-4322 for more de
tails. Applications must be re
ceived by April 30, 2004.
(STF) Option: Forestland own
ers with at least 10 and fewer
than 5,000 acres may opt out of
the Forestland Program by
choosing the STF Option. This
option taxes forestland at 20
percent of the Forestland Pro
gram’s special assessment val
ue. The landowner pays a sev
erance tax when the timber is
harvested. Once a landowner
chooses the STF Option, the
property stays in this option un
til the land is sold or no longer
used as forestland.
Completed
applications
must be returned to county as
sessor’s offices by April 1 to
qualify for the STF Option on
2004-05 property taxes.
Applications for the STF Op
tion (Form 150-390-001) are
online at the Oregon Depart
ment of Revenue’s Web site
<www.dor.state.or.us/timber.ht
ml> or from county assessors.
The Department of Revenue’s
Web site also includes tools to
help forestland owners decide
which method best fits their
plans, including a schedule of
landowner information ses
sions.
The Department of Revenue
Timber Tax staff is available by
telephone at 503-378-4988 or
1-800-356-4222 (Oregon only).
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