DICKINSON, N.D.
North Dakota has a fairly balanced tax structure and its residents can look forward to some tax relief, North Dakota Tax Commissioner Cory Fong said Monday.
Fong was in Dickinson to discuss a number of changes to North Dakota's taxes made during the 2009 legislative session as well as take questions from Dickinson certified public accountants who attended the meeting.
Nathan Sorenson, of the Dickinson CPA's, said there are about 30 CPA's in town. On Monday, about 15 came to hear Fong speak as part of one of their annual meetings.
"We get together a few times a year," Sorenson said.
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Sorenson said he was approached by Fong's office this summer to have the commissioner speak and said he felt it would help area CPA's have their questions answered and to have a better understanding of changes.
Fong said he has been traveling throughout the state in order to reach out to the CPA community and see what their concerns and questions are as well as to overview recent changes.
Fong compared the state tax system to a three-legged stool, with over $530 million dollars in collections with sales and use taxes, $449 million collections in income taxes and over $740 million dollars in local property taxes.
"The 2009 legislative session was a historic session and was unprecedented and unparalleled in many respects," Fong said.
Landmark funding of priorities, healthy reserves for the future, broad-based tax relief, reform and simplification as well as tax incentives for businesses were a part of that, he added.
Fong said $295 million dollars of property tax relief to benefit homeowners, farmers, ranchers and commercial businesses was part of the session as well as the reduction of the average state school district general fund levy by 75 mills.
Sorenson said he feels it important that clients be able to see savings in their case, stating seeing millions of dollars benefiting the state doesn't mean much to the individual client.
"There will be $90 million in individual income tax relief with benefits to all taxpayers," Fong said. "The average savings/return will be 12 percent. An average family making $60,000 to $80,000 will realize approximately $88 to $140 in savings each year on their return. "
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Tax relief in the business arena was targeted toward small businesses, he added.
For more information, visit www.nd.gov/tax .
The Dickinson Press and the Herald are Forum Communications Co. newspapers.
