Soggy San Diego Gets a Little Sunshine From the IRS: A Tax-Filing Extension

Taxpayers in a disaster area automatically qualify and don’t need to contact the IRS to get the relief, the agency said.

A person stands near a vehicle moved by flooding that remains lodged on a fence the day after an explosive rainstorm deluged areas of San Diego County in San Diego on Jan. 23, 2024. Mario Tama/Getty Images

The IRS had some good news for San Diego County residents battered by winter storms: Their tax-filing deadline has been extended to June 17.

The new deadlines are a break for “individuals and businesses in parts of California affected by severe storms and flooding that began Jan. 21,” the Internal Revenue Service said on its website.

The break is available to taxpayers who live or have a business in a disaster area as designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

San Diego County was hit by monster El Nino storms in late January and mid-February that caused widespread flooding and landslides.

A Jan. 22 storm drenched some San Diego communities with more than 2 inches of rain in two hours. It was the fourth wettest day since 1850 for San Diego, according to the National Weather Service.

President Joe Biden on Feb. 19 declared the county a disaster area and ordered federal assistance.

According to the IRS, the June deadline applies to the following cases:

• Individual income tax returns and payments normally due April 15.
• 2023 contributions to IRAs and health savings accounts.
• 2024 estimated tax payments normally due on April 15, 2024.
• Quarterly payroll and excise tax returns normally due Jan. 31, 2024, and April 30, 2024.

Taxpayers in a disaster area automatically qualify, the agency said. They don’t need to contact the IRS to get the relief.

Additional relief may be available to disaster-area taxpayers with an individual retirement account. The IRS website says these taxpayers may be able to take a withdrawal that would not be subject to a 10 percent early distribution tax.