This week, the Senate Finance Committee approved a measure to waive interest on certain tax payments for individuals and businesses in counties affected by Hurricane Helene. If the bill becomes law, interest will be waived through September 25, 2025, for taxpayers located in federally declared disaster areas.
The relief applies to individual income, corporate income, franchise, partnership, and estate and trust tax payments and returns. The extension also applies to withholdings for the third quarter of 2024 through the second quarter of 2025 and estimated payments.
This action follows the IRS’s April 17 announcement postponing the federal filing and payment deadline for all NC taxpayers to September 25. The NC Department of Revenue subsequently announced statewide penalty relief for those who file and pay by the new deadline.
Since then, NCACPA submitted a letter (House | Senate) and held discussions with state legislative leaders, advocating for interest relief aligned with federal disaster provisions. We encouraged options for both statewide and targeted relief for disaster-impacted taxpayers.
The interest relief provision was added to SB 595, which makes various technical and administrative changes to North Carolina’s revenue laws. Other key provisions in the bill include:
- NCACPA-supported conformity with the federal BBA Centralized Partnership Audit Regime, allowing tax assessments and refunds at the entity level based on federal changes.
- A new timber loss casualty deduction for personal income taxpayers who suffered losses due to Hurricane Helene.
- Tax parity for short-term car rentals by expanding alternate highway use tax to include peer-to-peer rentals.
- Enhanced tax foreclosure and special assessment collection efforts with reference to federal liens
A section-by-section summary of the bill’s provisions is available here. The bill passed the Rules Committee on June 12 and now heads to the Senate floor for a vote. If approved, it will proceed to the House for further consideration