Coronavirus: E-filing urged for Idaho income taxes during extension; new Kootenai cases
The Idaho State Tax Commission is reminding residents that their state income taxes are due on June 15, and filing taxes online is the best option.
The commission’s customer service centers remain closed amid the coronavirus pandemic, but the staff is continuing to process returns as they come in.
“The best way to file your taxes while following social distancing is to e-file your return or mail it to us,” Tax Commission Chairman Tom Harris said in a news release.
Free e-filing is available for people who have an adjusted gross income of $69,000 or less.
To avoid penalty or interest charges, state taxes must be filed no later than June 15. In March, Gov. Brad Little moved Idaho’s state tax day from April 15 to June 15, a month sooner than the federal filing date, which was moved to July 15.
For more information, visit the tax commission’s website at tax.idaho.gov. To access the state’s e-filing page, visit tax.idaho.gov/freefile.
New cases in Kootenai, statewide coronavirus deaths pass 50
Two new coronavirus cases were reported in Kootenai County on Wednesday afternoon. The county’s total now sits at 56, according to a news release from the Panhandle Health District.
Five newly reported coronavirus-related deaths in Idaho pushed the state’s total Tuesday to 53 deaths.
Two new deaths were reported in Ada County on Tuesday. Single deaths were reported in Canyon, Nez Perce and Twin Falls counties. Nez Perce, a county with only 35 confirmed cases, has been the site of 12 deaths from COVID-19.
Ada County is tied with Nez Perce County with 12 reported fatalities. Twin Falls County has seen 11 and Canyon County six.
On Tuesday, new cases were reported in Ada, Blaine, Canyon, Elmore, Kootenai, Lincoln, Nez Perce, Owyhee and Twin Falls counties.
Cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in 32 of Idaho’s 44 counties: Ada 591, Adams 3, Bannock 5, Bingham 3, Blaine 473, Bonner 4, Bonneville 16, Camas 1, Canyon 202, Caribou 1, Cassia 11, Custer 2, Elmore 23, Fremont 2, Gem 9, Gooding 7, Idaho 3, Jefferson 4, Jerome 36, Kootenai 56, Latah 4, Lincoln 18, Madison 5, Minidoka 7, Nez Perce 35, Owyhee 5, Payette 10, Power 2, Teton 7, Twin Falls 117, Valley 2 and Washington 1.
Idaho has community spread in 14 counties: Ada, Bingham, Blaine, Bonneville, Canyon, Elmore, Gem, Jefferson, Jerome, Kootenai, Madison, Payette, Teton and Twin Falls.
Anonymous donor gives money to Boise businesses
The Boise Metro Chamber has received a donation of $60,000 that will be distributed to a diverse group of small businesses in the Boise area on behalf of an anonymous donor.
The donor is a “longtime Chamber member who selected 60 small businesses that could use additional cash flow to keep their operations alive through this crisis,” according to a press release sent by the Boise Metro Chamber.
The donor asked for 60 $1,000 checks to be distributed to the selected businesses. They will arrive with a letter from Boise Metro Chamber President and CEO Bill Connors, the organization said.
Boise approves potentially buying trailers for most essential employees
During its meeting Tuesday, the Boise City Council approved spending up to $355,203 on 25 travel trailers. The trailers, if needed, would be used to house a “skeleton crew” of Boise’s public works employees, Colin Hickman, department spokesman, told the Statesman.
The spread of COVID-19 has not gotten to that point. The department is taking its cues from others around the country, Hickman said, leading to the request to be prepared for the worst.
If purchased, the trailers would be used to provide some of the most crucial public works employees shelter. They would live in the trailers temporarily to avoid contact with others.
“These folks are highly trained, highly skilled, they’re licensed operators,” Hickman said in a phone interview. “They’re absolutely crucial to maintaining a working city, and so they’re extraordinarily high on the city’s list of folks that we need to ensure are able to perform their job.”
The trailers would come from four Boise-area dealers. The city’s contract requires that the trailers are able to be delivered within 48 hours of the decision to use them. The city would seek reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for money spent, Hickman said.
This story was originally published April 22, 2020 at 12:49 PM.
