The deadline to file state income taxes in Massachusetts has been pushed back three months as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Now, instead of April 15, Bay Staters will have until July 15 to file their 2019 state income taxes and make the necessary payments. The decision comes several days after the federal government pushed back the federal tax deadline to July 15.
In doing so, Massachusetts becomes one of 37 states to push back its state income tax filing deadline, according to the Tax Foundation.
“In partnership with our colleagues in the Legislature, we are committed to providing this flexibility to taxpayers in a way that protects the Commonwealth’s strong fiscal footing that we have all worked hard to develop over the past several years,” Governor Charlie Baker said in a written statement.
The decision drew praise from the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, which had earlier argued that Baker should delay the tax deadline.
“Anything the Governor can do to help people keep more of their money at this time should be applauded. By extending the deadline to mirror the Federal level, people will have more funds now to pay for essential costs in these trying times. This will end up saving the state money in the long term,” MassFiscal spokesman Paul Craney said in a written statement.
The Boston Globe reports that legislation will be filed which will allow the state to borrow money so that it does not end up with a budget shortfall in fiscal year 2020, which ends on June 30. That is because the state constitution requires that Massachusetts balance its budget every fiscal year.
The move is expected to result in $5.5 billion less revenue than expected for the state in fiscal year 2020: $2 billion in individual state income tax revenue and $3.5 billion in state corporate income tax revenue, according to State House News Service.
The state has a 5.0 percent income tax on individuals and an 8.0 percent income tax on corporations.
