Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 4, 1999
Contact:  Pete Pedersen, 206-223-1606; cell: 206-769-4743
Alt Contact:  Mike Gowrylow, DOR: 360-753-7624; pager: 360-741-1808

Rip, click: Washington launches online business tax filing

SEATTLE — With a rip and a click, Gov. Gary Locke today launched a high-tech electronic filing system for businesses that is the first of its kind in the nation.

Locke and Bob Allen, president of MER Equipment of Seattle, tore apart an oversized paper tax return to highlight an Internet-based Electronic Filing (ELF) system that lets businesses file and pay their taxes directly over the Internet.

They then watched a demonstration of the ease with which businesses can point and click a computer mouse to complete their combined excise tax returns. Simultaneous ELF events occurred in Spokane and Yakima.

Washington is the first state in the nation to offer its business taxpayers a quick and accurate way to file and pay their taxes over the Internet without using intermediary firms. The simple yet powerful browser-based system was developed in consultation with businesses and incorporates the features that taxpayers said they wanted to see in an electronic filing system.

"Washington leads the country in offering its taxpayers a 'nontaxing' way to pay taxes using the latest technologies," Locke said. "ELF shows how business and government can work together to take the paper out of paperwork."

While the state's 450,000 businesses are still free to use traditional paper returns, ELF offers some major advantages. It functions in a secure, encrypted environment so the confidentiality of taxpayer information is protected. Users can customize returns to fit their business, instantly access the latest tax information, and "warehouse" their payments so their taxes aren't paid until the due date.

The free system also automatically calculates tax data, targets any potential errors or omissions, electronically submits the return to the state Department of Revenue, and even provides a receipt to prove the return was filed and paid. The entire process takes about 10 minutes.

ELF's features and benefits convinced Allen to begin using it several months ago when the production system first went online. The system initially was available only to most monthly filers, but is being expanded to allow the state's quarterly taxpayers to file their second-quarter 1999 returns online. Annual taxpayers will be added later as ELF continues to be enhanced.

"It's a great system. I like it because I don't have to go through the whole tax form," said Kathy Hoyt, office manager for MER Equipment, a family-owned generator manufacturing business that started as a marine engine repair facility in 1964.

Mark Hugh, a partner with the accounting firm of Clark Nuber in Bellevue, offered a similar thumbs-up review. "It caught every curve ball we tried to throw at it," he said. "We're recommending it to our clients."

ELF also benefits the state by reducing the overhead associated with processing millions of paper returns every year, said Fred Kiga, director of the Department of Revenue.

ELF promises to reduce the 15-percent error rate now found in paper returns and time-consuming reworking of the returns by both the department and taxpayers. By catching errors before a return is filed, ELF will help make both business and government more productive, he said.

"If we can help taxpayers get it right the first time, everyone wins," Kiga said.

To spread the word about ELF, the Department of Revenue developed a CD-ROM that demonstrates the system's features and benefits. Over time, the agency expects that up to a third of taxpayers will choose to file and pay their taxes electronically.

For a copy of the CD-ROM, call toll free 1-877-FILE-ELF (1-877-345-3353), or visit the department's web site at http://www.dor.wa.gov.

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