$2.4 billion are waiting in refunds for the individuals who did not file their 1997 tax returns. Taxpayers have up to three years to file a return. If they don’t, the refund they would have received is lost. The deadline for filing a return for 1997 is April 16th, 2001. The penalty for filing a late return is waived when there is a refund due.
According to IRS projections, more than half the taxpayers have a refund check of less than $464 awaiting them. These are individuals who didn’t earn a lot of money that year and decided not to file a tax return. Many of these individuals qualified for the Earned Income Tax Credit.
Individuals with less than a)$29,200 in income with more than one qualifying child; b)$25,760 with one qualifying child; c)$9770 with no qualifying child are all eligible for the EITC. These individuals would receive a refund if the credit exceeds the taxes owed. However IRS warns that this refund can only be collected now. If the return were filed after the three years are up, the refund would no longer exist.
IRS also made it clear that anyone who did not file a return for 1998 and 1999 and decides to file one for 1997 would not receive a refund. The check would be used to pay off any taxes that the individual owes to the IRS or debts to the federal government.
The following table (courtesy of IRS web site) is setup to show the refunds due according to the states and the number of non-filers:
| State | Population | Median | Estimated Tax Refund (In Millions) |
| Alabama |
25,800 | $468 | $21,272 |
| Alaska |
7,700 | $506 | $10,052 |
| Arizona |
31,600 | $409 | $89,547 |
| Arkansas |
14,300 | $444 | $12,213 |
| California |
169,300 | $418 | $178,707 |
| Colorado |
27,800 | $428 | $45,991 |
| Connecticut |
18,600 | $522 | $27,379 |
| Delaware |
5,400 | $452 | $5,711 |
| Dist. of Columbia |
7,000 | $449 | $11,252 |
| Florida |
104,000 | $472 | $152,671 |
| Georgia |
58,800 | $438 | $58,808 |
| Hawaii |
10,600 | $486 | $11,105 |
| Idaho |
5,900 | $403 | $10,101 |
| Illinois |
70,300 | $500 | $445,181 |
| Indiana |
33,000 | $498 | $32,656 |
| Iowa |
15,300 | $453 | $12,384 |
| Kansas |
17,600 | $454 | $18,441 |
| Kentucky |
17,200 | $458 | $16,522 |
| Louisiana |
26,200 | $478 | $27,502 |
| Maine |
5,200 | $429 | $4,951 |
| Maryland |
34,100 | $467 | $39,328 |
| Massachusetts |
35,700 | $501 | $71,552 |
| Michigan |
68,100 | $495 | $115,744 |
| Minnesota |
21,500 | $403 | $20,010 |
| Mississippi |
13,300 | $435 | $11,601 |
| Missouri |
32,000 | $453 | $28,918 |
| Montana |
4,000 | $426 | $4,065 |
| Nebraska |
7,800 | $437 | $6,871 |
| Nevada |
17,300 | $445 | $27,851 |
| New Hampshire |
5,700 | $528 | $7,310 |
| New Jersey |
52,900 | $504 | $73,336 |
| New Mexico |
9,800 | $427 | $9,809 |
| New York |
101,500 | $487 | $172,372 |
| North Carolina |
47,700 | $416 | $42,026 |
| North Dakota |
2,200 | $446 | $2,534 |
| Ohio |
50,600 | $455 | $54,386 |
| Oklahoma |
21,800 | $444 | $25,253 |
| Oregon |
24,100 | $406 | $28,133 |
| Pennsylvania |
52,000 | $492 | $71,772 |
| Puerto Rico |
2,300 | $1,077 | $7,350 |
| Rhode Island |
5,100 | $462 | $7,958 |
| South Carolina |
18,900 | $421 | $17,527 |
| South Dakota |
2,600 | $447 | $2,438 |
| Tennessee |
25,000 | $479 | $37,460 |
| Texas |
123,600 | $493 | $145,806 |
| Utah |
9,900 | $409 | $12,823 |
| Vermont |
2,400 | $418 | $2,486 |
| Virgin Islands |
1,800 | $443 | $1,086 |
| Virginia |
46,200 | $449 | $61,777 |
| Washington |
42,500 | $497 | $59,974 |
| West Virginia |
4,700 | $500 | $4,877 |
| Wisconsin |
19,400 | $419 | $18,130 |
| Wyoming |
2,500 | $497 | $2,902 |
| Armed Forces |
4,600 | $511 | $2,912 |
| US Possessions |
3,900 | $490 | $2,319 |
| Foreign/Other |
4,100 | $901 | $21,685 |
| Total | 1,593,200 | $464 | $2,414,827 |
