IRS Provides Tax Relief for Louisiana After Hurricane Francine

The IRS has announced tax relief measures for individuals and businesses in Louisiana following the devastation caused by Hurricane Francine, which struck on September 11, 2024. The hurricane resulted in significant damage, leaving approximately 250,000 homes and businesses without power and causing extensive flooding. In response, the IRS is extending filing and payment deadlines for tax returns and payments due from September 10, 2024, to February 3, 2025, benefiting taxpayers across the state, including those outside the immediate disaster area. Taxpayers in the affected regions will automatically receive relief without needing to contact the IRS. This includes extensions for filing 2023 federal tax returns and quarterly estimated income tax payments. Employers will also have additional time to file payroll and excise tax returns. Furthermore, penalties for late payroll and excise tax deposits made between September 10 and September 25 will be waived if paid by the latter date. Individuals who experienced uninsured losses due to the hurricane can choose to claim these losses on either their 2023 or 2024 tax returns, allowing for quicker potential tax refunds. The IRS has clarified that qualified disaster relief payments can be excluded from gross income, providing further financial relief to affected individuals. The coordinated federal response, including the IRS's relief efforts, follows declarations of a state of emergency by Louisiana's Governor Jeff Landry and President Joe Biden, which aim to mobilize federal resources for recovery efforts in the wake of the hurricane's impact.