The Montana Department of Revenue is hard at work filing state tax returns.

"We have issued over 204,000 refunds and those refunds have averaged $400 each," DOR Spokesperson Molly Peterson said. "It's a little up from last year in terms of what we have processed. :Last year, we had 232,000 returns processed and we had 194,000 refunds. The refund amount was $406 for the average, this time last year."

Peterson said due to issues the department sees sometimes each year, the official wrap up of tax season doesn’t come until later in the year.

"We have also stopped a significant amount of fraudulent returns," Peterson said. "We have blocked 188 fraudulent returns so far this year, which has saved folks over $220,000."

The tax deadline is April 18. Peterson said  if taxpayers need filing assistance, they can call the department’s call center toll-free at (866) 859-2254.

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