Published: November 16, 2008 11:09 pm         

IRS seeks area residents for refunds

DANVILLE — A number of area residents could have an early Christmas gift waiting for them — courtesy of the Internal Revenue Service.

The IRS is working to find residents in Vermilion County and Fountain County, Ind., who have not received either their tax refund, economic stimulus payment or both.

Sue Hales, spokeswoman for the IRS in Chicago, said there are 33 people with undeliverable stimulus payments and nine people with undeliverable tax refunds in Vermilion County. In Fountain County, there are seven people with undeliverable stimulus payments and five people with undeliverable refunds.

The federal government goes through several avenues trying to find these people, including checking other documents ranging from W2s to 1099s to try and locate an address.

“We found in a lot of cases, people move,” Hales said. “Usually it’s a life-changing event like marriage or divorce and when they move, they don’t think to change their address.”

Vermilion County Sheriff’s Deputy and DARE Officer Jay Miller said he was starting to wonder when he would get his stimulus check. After he was identified as one of the residents on the list, he knows.

Now, with the holidays on the way, he’s expecting to have an economic stimulus check soon.

“It going to be nice,” he said.

Miller said he moved in the spring, but had filed documents with the IRS twice since then with his new address. So the reason for the undeliverable check remains a mystery.

But Miller is hardly alone when it comes to undeliverable checks. Overall, the IRS has more than $8.7 million in undeliverable tax refunds and undeliverable stimulus payments for Illinois taxpayers: 9,100 stimulus payments and more than 3,600 regular refund checks.

Nationwide, more than 380,000 stimulus and tax refund checks totaling $266 million are still listed as undeliverable.

With the year coming to a close, it is important for residents who have not received a stimulus check to update their addresses with the IRS. The government has set a deadline of Nov. 28 to receive the addresses.

Hales said the stimulus checks can not be issued after Dec. 31, as mandated by law.

Anyone trying to update their address with the IRS is asked to visit the IRS Web site at http://www.irs.gov and follow the “Where’s My Stimulus Payment?” tool. It allows people to check on the status of a stimulus check and offers instructions on how to update an address.

Tax refund recipients do not have a deadline by which to enter a new address with the government. Those who do so can visit the “Where’s My Refund?” tool at the IRS Web site. By submitting a social security number, filing status and the amount of refund on their 2007 return, the Web site will provide the status of the refund and, in some cases, instructions on how to resolve the delivery problem.

People without Internet access can call (800) 829-1954 for their refund check or (866) 234-2942 for their stimulus check.

FYI

The IRS is looking for these people who have undeliverable tax refund, stimulus payment check or both.

--Danville

Dante Bonner, David T. Bryant, Terry A. Contois, Carrie A. Cottle, Sara L. Crippin, Kevin W. Drake, Roy A. Evans, Jordan R. Mance, Charonda Merrell, Lue C. Miller, Frederick Murphy, Mary A. Neitzelt, Lloyd R. Ordiway Jr., Teresa Palmer, Alyssa Pluskis, Cameron J. Polansky, Lorenda A. Price, Jason E. Ramlow, Chris A. Rudy, Michael Ryder, Alice Snyder, Jennifer L. Studholme, Ercelyn Thomas, Ernesto Vasquez, Cody Weaver, Ryan N. Weber, Travis J. Weber, Michele D. Williams, Brianne Wing

--Georgetown

Clayton R. Dowers, Teresa Nash, Earl Noble, Gerald W. Osborne

--Hoopeston

Carl M. Houmes, Maggie Strawser

--Indianola

Jay A. Miller

--Oakwood

Ty A. Grigsby, Mary D. Myers, Leann R. Stingley,

--Westville

Jerry Nelk, Elizabeth White

--In Indiana

James M. Cramer, Daynetta L. Holloway, Chelsea R. Hoskins and David L. Leaver, all of Attica; Philip M. Chumley, Calvin G. Richards, Heagen R. Smith and Matthew Snodgrass, all of Covington; Tammy S. Elkins of Hillsboro; and Jerry E. Adkins Jr., Jessica C. Key and Nicole S. and Neil A Martin, all of Veedersburg.