More than 700,000 Marylanders should be able to file their state and federal income tax returns online for free next year, saving residents hours of work and hundreds of dollars on tax software and prep services.

Maryland joined dozens of states Wednesday in a voluntary federal program called Direct File after a test run received positive reviews and showed possible cost savings. Filing paper returns by mail will still be an option.

“It’s unacceptable that Marylanders should have to pay any portion whatsoever of their refund or paycheck to fulfill a mandatory requirement like filing tax returns,” Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman said at a news conference in Annapolis.

The first-term Democrat called the program a game changer for Maryland taxpayers that will modernize her agency. It targets low-to-moderate earners with relatively simple tax returns, and is expected to expand over time.

Lierman’s office will partner with the nonprofit Code for America to integrate the Maryland tax filing system into Direct File. Eligibility requirements will be announced in January, the comptroller’s office said.

Gov. Wes Moore, State Treasurer Dereck E. Davis, members of Maryland’s congressional delegation, U.S. Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo and nonprofit partners joined Lierman for the announcement.

Funds from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 helped build and test the system. The IRS and Treasury Department then invited states to participate.

The IRS has been considering a free e-filing option for low-income American taxpayers for decades, according to the Congressional Research Service. When tax prep companies pushed back, the federal government agreed not to compete with them if they provided free help and e-filing to low-earning taxpayers.

However, many qualified taxpayers were pushed toward paid services, according to an investigation by nonprofit news outlet ProPublica.

The IRS piloted Direct File in 12 states this year. Filers used a laptop, tablet, cellphone or other device to submit income returns and request certain tax credits offered to low-earning individuals and families.

In a survey, nine out of 10 Direct File users ranked their experience as “Excellent” or “Above Average.”

U.S. Rep Steny Hoyer, a Democrat representing Maryland’s 5th District, called paying taxes the “price of our democracy.”

“We ought to make it as easy as possible for people to comply with a legal obligation that they have to support their country, their state and their communities,” he said. “And this system of Direct File does that.”

Robin McKinney, CEO and co-founder of CASH Campaign of Maryland, said easy, free online filing makes the government work more efficiently for citizens and should deliver refunds and credits to taxpayers faster.

McKinney’s nonprofit promotes economic advancement for low- to moderate-income Marylanders and provides free tax help, among other services.

Economic Security Project, a nonprofit that advocates for guaranteed income and economic equity for working families, found that adopting Direct File could mean $355 million in costs and time saved for Maryland’s low- to moderate-earners.

Maryland recently has expanded tax credits for working families, but about $152 million goes unclaimed each year, according to the Security Project’s analysis.

They also estimated that about $148 million could be saved in filing fees and $56 million could be saved in time spent filing taxes.

That money could have gone into Marylanders’ pockets, CASH Campaign’s McKinney said, and it could have gone back into the state’s economy.

Some Maryland taxpayers will be able to use a free electronic filing tool for their federal taxes rather than having to pay a tax preparer or buy tax-filing software next year, when Maryland will offer the IRS’s new Direct File service.

The service was tested in 12 states this year, where 140,803 people filed with Direct File, saving an estimated $5.6 million in tax preparation fees. Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman (D) estimated Wednesday that as many as 700,000 Maryland taxpayers could be eligible for the program when it debuts in the state next year.

“While we value our relationship with tax preparers and CPAs (certified public accountants), it’s unacceptable that Marylanders should have to pay any portion whatsoever of their refund or paycheck to fulfill a mandatory requirement like filing tax returns,” Lierman said at a news conference announcing the program.

The IRS and the U.S. Treasury still have to finalize eligibility rules for the program this fall, but Lierman said it will be a “game changer” for those families who do qualify, which could be as much as 20% of individual taxpayers in the state.

“Taxes are a part of the glue that keeps our state and our nation together, functioning, producing, protecting and thriving,” Lierman said. “Yet in America, we make it uniquely challenging to pay those taxes and file a return — until now.”

According to the Treasury, taxpayers spend “approximately 13 hours and $270 preparing their taxes each year.” Many Americans use tax filing services or software, such as TurboTax and H&R Block, to ensure that their taxes are filed correctly, despite most of the information being readily available state and federal tax collection agencies.

Direct File launched this year in 12 states for people to file their 2023 federal returns — Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Treasury Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo said the program is aimed at helping middle-income tax filers with “relatively simple” filings.

“What I can tell you is our goal for us is to build a system that’s going to work for working class and middle class Americans. So you get a W-2, and you’re somebody who’s a teacher, you’re a fireman, you’re a doctor who’s earning most of your money from a W-2, we want to make sure we’re building a system that potentially works for you,” said Adeyemo, who was in Annapolis for the announcement.

“The thing we’re not going to do is build a system that works for big corporations or wealthy individuals. Next year we’re going to expand the system so that more Americans are able to participate in it,” Adeyemo said.

The Biden administration invited all 50 states and the District of Columbia to join the program next year, when people will be filing their 2024 taxes. The Treasury said that Maryland joins Oregon, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Connecticut, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Maine in taking up Direct File.

“I know to some, this announcement may seem inconsequential — and I know how exciting tax announcements are,” Gov. Wes Moore (D) joked at the announcement. “But the details matter. They matter to the families who are impacted by this work. They’re going to matter to the families, who … dread tax season because it feels complicated. Who dread tax season because it seems expensive, or oftentimes have to deal with the consequences of getting something wrong.”

The Direct File program came out of the Inflation Reduction Act signed in 2022, which also secured additional funding to help the IRS modernize and provide better services to Americans.

But Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), who chairs a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee, said Direct File program and other services under the Inflation Reduction Act could be “under threat.”  While his subcommittee wants to fully fund the IRS and keep Direct File going, House leaders want to cut funding for both.

He also said that the industry is lobbying against the free tax filing system.

“There are people who didn’t want us to do this, including a lot of the middlemen” who currently profit from tax preparation, Van Hollen said. “They’re lobbying against this kind of thing.”

In addition to Van Hollen, Moore, Lierman and Adeyemo, Wednesday’s event drew a number of Maryland Democratic heavyweights: U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, U.S. Reps. Steny Hoyer John Sarbanes and State Treasurer Dereck Davis.

Hoyer put it simply: “Nobody likes taxes.”

“We don’t really get excited about paying our taxes. But we know that it is the price of our democracy,” Hoyer said. “We ought to make it as easy as possible for people to comply with a legal obligation that they have to support their country, their state and their communities.”

BALTIMORE -Nice weather continues through Thursday. Sprinkles & drizzle may develop Friday with steadier rain likely Saturday. 

We are right in the middle of an outstanding weather pattern that will continue into Thursday. Temperatures reached the middle to upper 70s Wednesday afternoon with comfortable humidity levels. High clouds are mainly south of Baltimore, so we’ve enjoyed a mostly sunny sky.

We have a fantastic evening of weather on the way. If you’re headed to the Os game this evening expect mostly sunny weather for the 1st pitch at 6:35 PM against the White Sox. Temperatures will start in the upper 70s, but then ease into the lower 70s by the end of the game. 

Early fall-like temperatures return tonight with lows in the 50s for most neighborhoods. The coolest overnight lows in the low 50s will be located in neighborhoods north and west of the Baltimore Beltway. Temperatures in the metro will dip down into the upper 50s. Any patchy high thin clouds will sink south overnight.

Humidity levels gradually climb Thursday, but we still score ourselves a very nice day. Highs will climb toward 80°. Other than a few patchy clouds, expect a mostly sunny sky. 

You will feel even more humidity in the air on Friday. With an easterly to southeasterly wind off the Ocean, areas of low clouds will be possible. As the atmosphere continues to moisten through the day Friday, patchy sprinkles and drizzle will become possible. The greatest chance for this happening would be late Friday into Friday evening. While the rain will be light and patchy in nature, you may want a poncho or light rain jacket if you’re headed to any high school Friday night football games. 

Scattered showers and patchy drizzle is likely Friday night with lows in the middle 60s.

Saturday will be our last real humid day for awhile. Expect patchy areas of light rain and showers during the morning and midday hours. There may be a lull or two in the wet weather Saturday, but a steadier round of showers, possibly a thunderstorm will cross the area Saturday evening into early Saturday night. Highs on Saturday will top out in the upper 70s. The cold front that’s responsible for Saturday’s wet weather will flush out the clouds, showers, and humidity overnight Saturday. Temperatures late Saturday night will fall into the lower to middle 50s!

Sunday has another beautiful fall-like feel. Early morning temperatures in the lower to middle 50s with highs in the middle 70s. We get to enjoy abundant sunshine and pleasant breeze out of the northwest at 10 mph.

A winning stretch of weather continues for most of next week along with a gradual warming trend. Highs on Monday reach the upper 70s. By Tuesday and Wednesday, high temperatures climb into the lower 80s with plenty of sunshine and low humidity. We get to enjoy yet another spectacular stretch of September weather for most of next week with little to no rain!