Ohio catching up on sending out state tax booklets

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — After a holdup caused by a budget battle, officials say most of this year’s Ohio tax information booklets should be distributed by early next week.

Printing of about 1.8 million booklets was slowed three weeks as the Ohio Legislature debated whether to put off a scheduled tax cut, a dispute that created uncertainty over the tax rates for 2009.

In a December compromise, the Legislature finally agreed to the tax cut delay supported by Democrats and Gov. Ted Strickland.

Ohio Department of Taxation spokesman John Kohlstrand says the vast majority of the tax packets will have been sent out by Feb. 9.

He says as of Monday more than half the mailings to homes were completed but only one-third of bulk shipments to libraries, post offices and banks were done.