CNN 2010-03-10

And if you've already set off your tax return, there is no need to rush out to the mailbox. This year, cash strapped¹ states are going to be much slower in issuing your refund². Here to tell you why, Christine Romans at CNN money team. She joins us from New York. Christine, not a good thing to be dealing³ with right now

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: No.

PHILLIPS: Not coming up on the holiday?

ROMANS: No, and these states have such big budget crisis. In many cases, they don't have a choice. Look, they have not been able to hire the people who usually do this work, right? The people usually are doing your tax refund. They don't have the money to hire the people, so they don't even have all the people in place to do this. In some cases, these states need your money a little bit longer to help them fill some budget holes. So think of it, Kyra, as a no- interest loan to your state that you don't have any control over.

Hawaii has already said that you could expect your refund July 1st. That is a delay due to the state's current fiscal⁴ situation. July 1, 2010, no surprise there. Look, that's going to give them a little bit of $275 million pot that they are going to go towards balancing the state budget. North Carolina has said that they're not giving date for people, but that they're going to go on a week by week basis because of the affects of the slow economy. They are managing the distribution of refunds⁵ as a result, so they won't give a date, but it could be anytime.

So, if you are in North Carolina, you're in Hawaii, or you're in a number of other states, actually, who have said we are considering this, and it may very well be that it's going to be a little bit slower for you. In some states, they're just slowing the processing a little bit. In other states, as I mentioned, they don't have the people that actually do the work because of state budget crunches⁶. You can expect that this year, next year, and a few states did this last year. Look, I mean, this is the way it is. They don't have any money, and that means they're going to have to hold on to your money a little bit longer. A couple things I wanted to add. That means, of course, filing your taxes, the sooner the better. It also means if you need to think about your own budget crisis, you should start thinking about an extension. You can get another six months to pay your own taxes, and Kyra, this is critical. Everybody out there who is out there looking for a job, please, keep all of your receipts because you're going to be able to file -- you're going to be able to try and get money back for the expenses that you have passed out for trying to get a job, and that means plane tickets; it means your resume; it means any kind of career counseling, so keep track of all that stuff. You can write that off on your taxes this year-- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. And apparently⁷ the IRS is looking at us with a closer eye as well. Apparently, there are going to be more audits⁸ is the word.

ROMANS: They need every single penny of our tax money because this is a job story. Jobs have disappeared, right? That means there's left money coming in. That means they're going to scrutinize⁹. They need every penny that is owed to them yet.

PHILLIPS: Christine Romans, thanks, but no thanks.
 

1 strapped   

adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带

参考例句：

• Make sure that the child is strapped tightly into the buggy. 一定要把孩子牢牢地拴在婴儿车上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soldiers' great coats were strapped on their packs. 战士们的厚大衣扎捆在背包上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 refund   

v.退还，偿还；n.归还，偿还额，退款

参考例句：

• They demand a refund on unsatisfactory goods.他们对不满意的货品要求退款。
• We'll refund your money if you aren't satisfied.你若不满意，我们愿意退款给你。

3 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

4 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

5 refunds   

n.归还，偿还额，退款( refund的名词复数 )v.归还，退还( refund的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Tomorrow he would return them to the store and claim refunds. 明天他要把它们退还给商店并要求退款。 来自辞典例句
• The new method means that taxpayers get refunds much faster. 这种新办法意味着纳税人可以较快地领到退还款。 来自辞典例句

6 crunches   

n.（突发的）不足( crunch的名词复数 )；需要做出重要决策的困难时刻；紧要关头；嘎吱的响声v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的第三人称单数 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄

参考例句：

• I can't bear the way she crunches the sugar. 我简直看不惯她嚼糖的那副样子。 来自辞典例句
• Crunches with a twisting motion (to hit obliques) are excellent. 做仰卧起坐时加上转体动作更好。 来自互联网

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 audits   

n.审计，查账( audit的名词复数 )v.审计，查账( audit的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Requires that use of all bond funds is subject to independent audits. 需要使用的所有债券基金是受独立审计。 来自互联网
• Support the locations during customer-visits, audits and quality-improvement programs. 支持客户参观，稽核和提高品质等项目。 来自互联网

9 scrutinize   

n.详细检查，细读

参考例句：

• Her purpose was to scrutinize his features to see if he was an honest man.她的目的是通过仔细观察他的相貌以判断他是否诚实。
• She leaned forward to scrutinize their faces.她探身向前，端详他们的面容。