Rubio, Nelson Seek Statewide Filing Extension for Irma Victims

September 15, 2017

The Honorable John Koskinen
Commissioner
Internal Revenue Service
111 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20224

Dear Commissioner Koskinen:

Thank you for granting our request to extend the calendar year filing deadline for victims of Hurricane Irma to January 31, 2018. Unfortunately, this extension only applies to those located in counties who have been approved for Individual Assistance (IA), and not the entire state.

Due to the unprecedented size of Hurricane Irma and uncertainty surrounding its path, the entire state of Florida, private businesses included, effectively shut down on September 8 in an effort to prepare their homes and families for this deadly storm. During this period, hundreds of billable hours were lost, setting many firms irrevocably behind schedule to meet all September 15 deadlines. In addition to this statewide shutdown, some tax preparers are in counties not yet declared for FEMA’s IA, but have clients located in counties that are IA eligible.

We urge that you to grant deadline relief to the entire state of Florida. Doing so will take into account the historic size of this storm and help many victims of this disaster avoid late tax filing penalties and to recover as quickly as possible from Hurricane Irma.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Marco Rubio
U.S. Senator

Bill Nelson
U.S. Senator