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Tax filing and refund processing delayed as DRT works around vendor suspension
Summary
DRT officials told legislators that e-filing is unavailable for several tax lines, refunds may be delayed, and a one-week backlog of 4,110 hard-copy individual returns accumulated between March 2127; payments are in suspense accounts while reconciliations proceed.
Taxpayers and businesses were advised March 30 that some Department of Revenue and Taxation services are limited after a vendor suspended maintenance access, even as DRT staff work manual processes to serve walk-in customers.
Taxpayer Services Administrator Jerome Muggan told the finance committee that e-filing for some returns (including many BPT filers) has been unavailable since the vendor suspension March 21, forcing taxpayers to submit hard copies or pay in person at the Treasurer of Guam. DRT reported 4,110 hard-copy individual returns filed March 2127 and said staff had scanned and prepped those returns for later system entry.
Refunds and timelines: DRT previously issued refunds within about six weeks of filing; with current system limits, the agency is creating manual workflows and coordinating with DOA to release funds. Director Marie Lzama said that payments received during the outage are being held in suspense accounts pending reconciliation and that the agency intends to issue a public notice on waivers and penalty abatement if services remain down.
Penalty relief and uniform policy: Committee members urged DRT to adopt an across-the-board circular to waive interest and penalties for filers prevented from filing or paying because of the outages. Tax Enforcement Administrator Carolyn Rivera said existing law and agency guidelines allow waivers for agency errors and failures and recommended a consistent, non-ad-hoc approach to protect taxpayers.
Access and front-line measures: DRT said passport services and some in-person motor-vehicle transactions remain available because those branches use other vendors or are handled manually. Acting MVD Administrator Zita Pangalinan described steps to screen documents, conduct vision tests and schedule affected customers for follow-up appointments rather than deny service.
What taxpayers should do: DRT agreed to publish updated guidance, including where to file hard copies or pay in person, how to request abatement for agency-caused late filings and the expected timeline for processing the current backlog. The committee requested a specific accounting of lost or delayed revenue and a clear public Q&A about the steps to protect filers from penalties.
The committee left the record open for follow-up materials showing the backlog's processing plan, the status of funds in suspense accounts and any formal waivers issued.
