At publication time, Hurricane Ian has passed over Florida and has touched down in South Carolina. Nearly two million Florida residents are without power. The estimated fatalities from Hurricane Ian is now over 20.

Florida Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie stated on Friday that the number of deaths could be higher than reported. Hurricane Ian was a Category 4 storm when it reached the west coast of Florida on Wednesday with winds over 125 mph during most of its path through Central Florida.

On Friday, President Biden spoke with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell. The White House indicated that efforts will be made to "prioritize lifesaving actions and ensure delivery of essential services and support to survivors."

At least a dozen Coast Guard aircraft have rescued over 80 individuals in southwest Florida. The Army Corps of Engineers has deployed forces to evaluate all of the bridges, roads and infrastructure in the devastated area.

Governor DeSantis indicated that over 3,000 individuals have been rescued from flooded homes in the areas hit hardest by Hurricane Ian. Over 80% of the devastated counties are without power. Six medical centers in southwest Florida were evacuated due to "problems with water or problems with power for an extended period of time."

In IR-2022-168, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) determined that Hurricane Ian victims would have extensions until February 23, 2023 to file most individual and business tax returns and make required tax payments.

The IRS determined that a Florida resident or business owner would qualify. The deadlines on or after September 23, 2022 are generally extended to February 15, 2023.

Many Florida residents who had extended their tax return filing date until October 17, 2022 will now have until February 15, 2023 to file. Remittance of tax was due on April 18, 2022, and that obligation remains unchanged.

Some individuals also have quarterly payments due on January 17, 2023 or payroll or excise tax returns due on October 31, 2022 and January 31, 2023. The relief generally applies to these filing deadlines for impacted taxpayers.

The IRS automatically will provide filing and penalty relief for Florida taxpayers. They do not need to call the agency. However, if they receive a late filing or payment penalty notice, they will need to contact the IRS.

The IRS reminded Florida residents in the federally declared disaster area that any uninsured or unreimbursed disaster-related losses may be claimed for tax year 2022 or for tax year 2021. The return needs to have the FEMA number DR-4673-FL to claim the loss.