MILWAUKEE (AP) - Wisconsin's revenue agency said Friday that it sent as many as 170,000 forms to taxpayers with mailing labels mistakenly printed with their Social Security numbers. The state Department of Revenue was scrambling to alert taxpayers to be on the lookout for the mailings.
"We want to prevent any chance identity theft might occur," department spokeswoman Meredith Helgerson said. An agency news release included an apology to taxpayers and a statement that steps were being taken "to make sure that this will never happen again."
The misprinted labels, blamed on a computer error while they were being prepared, went to taxpayers who have used the basic Form 1, a long paper form for individuals, according to the department.
Those who filed their taxes with other forms, had a professional service prepare their taxes or filed electronically were not affected, she said.
Helgerson said the erroneously labeled mailings were sent to post offices, although some that went to the Madison and Portage post offices had not gone out, allowing the state to prevent them from being mailed.
She said she couldn't estimate how many of the labels made it through the mail. The agency said the postal service has agreed to retrieve and return any tax booklets that have not yet been delivered.
