Tax preparers discuss impact of new tax law on filing season

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - By now people have gotten their W-2s and income tax season is underway, but some tax preparers say it’s off to a slow start.

This is the first filing season impacted by the 2017 tax cuts and job acts, the biggest tax law change in more than a decade. Taxpayers will notice a difference.

Even just two weeks in, tax preparers are noticing tax payers seem hesitant to get started. At the end of last filing season, Vickie Patterson made note of the biggest thing tax payers should expect in 2019 with the new law in effect.

“Your paycheck will be big, but your refund will go down," she said.

Patterson said those with dependents got good news.

“The child credit is 2000 versus 1,000," she said. "They got a bigger refund.”

But those with a number of exemptions, not so much.

“The more exemptions you put down, the less they’re going to take out," Patterson said.

Julie Magee is the former revenue commissioner for Alabama and the current director of tax regulatory affairs for Credit Karma Tax.

“Every tax payer, whether you’re high income or low income, it affected in you," Magee said.

Magee said that effect is positive if you’re ready for it.

“27.6 million people have filed their returns already, and that’s a little bit of a slower pace than what we saw last year," she said.

Patterson admits business has been slower than usual, attributing it to the concerns about the new law, as well as something else.

“They are waiting because they are worried about the shutdown," she said.

Both Patterson and Magee expect things to pick up in the coming weeks as the April 15 deadline approaches.

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