Question: I called the state tax department to order a hard copy of the Form N-11 and its instructions, and was told that it wasn’t sending out forms and instructions this year because its local printer had gone out of business and it was too late to find another printer. I was told to download the form and instructions online and print them myself. What about taxpayers who don’t have access to a computer and printer? Even for those who do, this is a hardship because the instructions can be dozens of pages. Not everyone does their taxes online. Some of us do them on paper, and we need hard copies of both the forms and the instructions. I can’t read 50 pages of instructions on the computer — it’s hard on the eyes. This will hurt elderly and poor people especially, who depend on the tax department to mail them the forms and instructions upon request. Can you please find out what is going on and get assurances that the tax department will mail out forms and instructions to taxpayers who request them?
Answer: The state Department of Taxation previously contracted with Hagadone Printing, which ceased operations in January, and intends to save money by distributing fewer hard-copy Hawaii income tax forms and instructions now and in the future, said spokeswoman Deborah Kwan. However, taxpayers with accessibility issues should be assisted, she said, and forms and instructions will continue to be mailed at their request; these documents also may be picked up at tax offices. Kwan apologized that you were not served and encouraged you to contact the department again so that your request can be met.
After our phone conversation, Kwan followed up by email with more information, which potentially affects anyone who does their taxes by hand:
“The Department will be mailing out a packet of Individual Income tax forms to taxpayers who previously requested them in the second week of February. Please note that unlike previous years, this packet contains only tax forms and does not contain the instruction book. … Please note that this is the last year we will be bulk sending printed forms by mail. We ask that taxpayers use this year to plan ahead to use one of the many options for filing Individual Income tax returns.
“The Department encourages everyone to electronically file (e-file) your returns. Taxpayers who e-file receive their refunds faster than those who file by paper. (Taxpayers can submit Form N-11, for resident income tax, via Hawaii Tax Online, with no filing fee. Link to HTO from tax.hawaii.gov/) …
“Printed forms may be picked up at all tax offices. Limited quantities of tax forms are on their way to public libraries across the state and should be available in February. However, please note that instruction books at the library will be for reference desk use only. Anyone wishing to keep a paper copy of the instructions will need to either download and print them from our website at tax.hawaii.gov/forms or request one from one of our tax offices.
“We do apologize to this particular taxpayer and have taken steps to ensure our staff know the protocol on how to process special requests for mailed tax forms and instructions for those who have accessibility issues. We’ve reminded our staff to first encourage taxpayers to e-file, view instructions online, download and print forms or instructions themselves, or pick them up in person from a tax office. If a taxpayer still has difficulty accessing the tax instructions and forms, we will mail them by request only.”
Call 587-4242 during regular business hours to make the request. For additional contact information and tax office locations, see tax.hawaii.gov/contact/.
Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
