Slaughter Reminds Residents of July 15 Tax Deadline

CHICAGO – As the extended state and federal tax filing deadlines approach, state Rep. Justin Slaughter, D-Chicago, is urging residents who have not filed yet to do so before July 15.

“Both the state and federal tax filing deadlines have been extended to July 15 to provide relief to those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, but that date is quickly approaching,” said Slaughter. “Waiting until the last minute can lead to serious problems or penalties if unexpected issues come up in the process.”

Extensions of the state and federal tax filing deadlines gave Illinois residents and business owners an extra 91 days to file to provide flexibility for those that may have lost income or faced financial hardships during the outbreak of COVID-19. The IRS encourages residents to use electronic filing options in an effort to support social distancing and to speed up the process of tax returns, refunds and payments.

Resources and free online filing methods for a federal return are available at irs.gov. The Illinois Department of Revenue’s offices are now open, but the agency encourages taxpayers with questions and other issues to contact them via phone at 1-800-732-8866 or 217-782-3336. More contact information, online filing links and resources are available at tax.illinois.gov.

“There is less than one week until the deadline to file your taxes, so it is important to begin organizing all of the information you need to do so,” said Slaughter. “I encourage local residents to file sooner rather than later in order to avoid unforeseen delays.”