A more than $402 million tax surplus was confirmed by the Office of Economic Analysis (OEA) last week, triggering a tax surplus credit, or “kicker,” for the 2014 tax year. The credit will be returned to taxpayers through a credit on their 2015 state personal income tax returns filed in 2016. There won’t be any kicker checks issued as there have been in the past. To calculate the amount of your credit, multiply your 2014 tax liability before any credits, except credits for taxes paid to other states, by 5.6 percent. This percentage is determined and certified by OEA. You’re eligible to claim the kicker if you filed a 2014 tax return and had tax due before credits. Even if you don’t have a filing obligation for 2015, you still have to file a 2015 tax return to claim your credit. There will be detailed information on how to claim your credit in the 2015 Oregon personal income tax return instructions: Form 40 for full-year Oregon residents, Form 40P for part-year residents, and Form 40N for nonresidents. Keep in mind that the state may use all or part of your kicker to pay any state debt, such as taxes due for other years, child support, court fines, or school loans. For more information on the kicker, visit www.oregon.gov/dor and follow the “Kicker Update” banner on the top of the homepage. Visit www.oregon.gov/dor to get tax forms, check the status of your refund, or make tax payments; or call 1-800-356-4222 toll-free from an Oregon prefix (English or Spanish); 503-378-4988 in Salem and outside Oregon; or email questions.dor@oregon.gov. For TTY for hearing or speech impaired, call 1-800-886-7204.
