Rep. O'Brien: Tax Refunds May Come as Debit Card

From the office of State Rep. Elaine O'Brien

State Rep. Elaine O’Brien (D-Suffield/Windsor/East Granby) is alerting constituents that their Connecticut tax returns might be arriving as a debit card this year.

“If you are expecting a refund from the state this year and you did not supply your banking information for direct deposit — you will receive a debit card,” O’Brien said. “Taxpayers should be aware of a new policy recently announced by the state Department of Revenue Services.”

The Connecticut Department of Revenue Services (DRS) announced that all state tax refunds less than $10,000 will be issued as debit cards unless recipients requested to have their refunds directly deposited into their bank accounts when they filed.

O'Brien said she will support changes to DRS policy to allow people to receive checks in the future if they wish, but in the meantime she is concerned that people might not understand how to use these cards and could inadvertently be charged fees.

Please visit the DRS website and click on the Debit Card FAQs icon on the left side of the page or call 1-800-382-9463 for more information.