Kokua Line June Watanabe

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Duplicate fee can be waived for W-2 form

Question:My son works for the state. He doesn't recall receiving a W-2 form so he asked about it. His boss told him to write a $10 money order payable to the Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS). He did that, took it back to work, then was told he had to write a letter. A co-worker told him she also didn't get a W-2 form. Why does he have to pay $10 to get the form and why do they require a letter?

Answer:In your son's case, the $10 may be refunded if it appears his W-2 form (Wage and Tax Statement) was somehow lost.

DAGS issues an annual "Comptroller's Memorandum" informing state departments when the W-2 form for state employees will be available and what procedures to follow in distributing them, explained state Comptroller Russ Saito, the head of DAGS.

Because of the large number of forms issued and to reduce the work required to issue duplicates, he said the memo "urges departments to caution their employees to keep the forms safe and informs them that a fee will be charged for a duplicate form."

Each department determines which forms are sent by the U.S. Postal Service and which forms are hand delivered, he said.

"If a department determines that the employee's form was returned as undeliverable by the USPS or that the employee was not directly given the form, the department may request a waiver of the duplicate fee," Saito said.

That's been a long-standing policy.

However, Saito says he sees where there may be concerns.

"The first is mail that is lost, rather than undeliverable, and the second is hand-delivered forms that get lost as they travel down the chain," he said.

He said he is amending the "Comptroller's Memorandum" to make it clear that people who do not receive their W-2 form in the mail or hand delivered "should inform their department of that fact so that they can receive a copy of their W-2 without charge."

If this happened in your son's case, Saito said he should ask his department to forward the information to DAGS, marked to his attention, and he will have his check refunded, "with interest."

Mahalo

To Honolulu police Lt. Letha DeCaires. Recently, I called 911 to offer additional information on mail theft occurring in our area. I spoke to a nonemergency 911 operator, who said a detective would return my call. DeCaires, a supervisor in the 911 office, overheard my call and called back immediately. She expressed such interest and concern in my situation and provided information on who to call and action to take. On another occasion, when I had a dilemma on who to call, I called her directly and although obviously busy, she patiently listened. Both times, she was not obligated to help me, but did so with such grace and professionalism. She is a true asset to the Honolulu Police Department. -- Appreciative Citizen