Republican leaders in Arizona said on Mar. 31 that state taxpayers should proceed with filing their taxes, following a period of confusion caused by the issuance of tax forms before updates to state law were completed. The situation arose after Governor Katie Hobbs’ Department of Revenue released tax forms assuming full conformity with federal changes, even though the necessary legal adjustments had not yet been made.
The issue is significant because more than a million Arizonans could be required to amend their returns if legislative changes are implemented after they have filed. Lawmakers attempted to resolve the problem by sending two separate bills to Governor Hobbs: one aimed at providing immediate relief and certainty for families, including childcare deductions, retirement relief, and eliminating taxes on tips and overtime; another designed to align state law with the already-issued forms so taxpayers would not need to amend their returns. Both measures were vetoed by Hobbs.
“Let’s be clear. This is a failure of leadership,” said Speaker Montenegro. “The Governor’s office issued tax forms based on a law that did not exist, told people to file anyway, and then vetoed the bills that would have fixed the problem. Now families are left wondering whether they will have to redo their taxes, pay more later, or spend weeks dealing with a mess they did not create. This could have been avoided if Hobbs had stepped up and called the special session we urged last fall so this could be addressed before filing season. Now Arizona Republicans are holding the line. File your taxes. We will not support anything that forces Arizonans to refile or pay more because of the Governor’s poor decisions. Arizona families deserve certainty, and Governor Hobbs failed to provide it.”
President Petersen also encouraged residents not to delay filing: “Arizonans should go ahead and file. They shouldn’t have to wait or deal with the fallout from this confusion,” Petersen said. He described hearing from constituents who experienced issues such as identity theft while waiting for clarity about how best to proceed: “We’ve heard from people across the state looking for answers, including a woman who waited because she was trying to follow the rules… Her return was rejected because the IRS had already accepted a filing under her Social Security number, and now she’s stuck proving who she is and fixing the damage.”
Carbone, a Republican representing Arizona’s 25th House District since 2023 after replacing Michelle Udall,according to Ballotpedia, has also been involved in legislative efforts during this period.
A video message in English related to these developments is available at https://youtu.be/X7yfU2lPRXE.
