Oregon's "kicker credit" gives over $5 billion back to taxpayers

(OCTOBER 13, 2023) Oregonians will get a big part of their 2022 Oregon income taxes back when they file their 2023 taxes next year. The Oregon Department of Revenue said the refund this time will be 44% of what they paid in taxes. They estimated it to be $5.6 billion in August, but now it's $5.61 billion. The average person will get about $980 back, but people with lower incomes get less (around $60), and the richest 1% get a lot more (over $44,000).

This money is called a "kicker credit," and Oregon is the only state with such a law. It happens when the state gets more money than expected, at least 2% more. This year's kicker is three times bigger than before because the experts didn't realize how well the Oregon economy would do after the pandemic.

You can get this money if you filed your 2022 Oregon taxes, even if you don't owe taxes in 2023. You can use it to pay other state debts or donate it to schools or charities. To know how much you'll get, multiply your 2022 tax liability by 44.28%, the official kicker percentage. (Oregon taxpayers can find their 2022 tax liability on line 22 of their 2022 Form OR-40.)