I saved $1400 on my Maryland return that TurboTax missed when recommending the Standard deduction. Under current Maryland law, if the standard deduction is taken at the federal level, the taxpayer may not itemize at the Maryland level. In order to itemize at the Maryland level, a taxpayer must itemize at the federal level. You are in no way prohibited from itemizing at the federal level, even if your total itemized deductions are less than the federal standard deduction, in order to benefit from itemizing at the Maryland level. The most beneficial course may be to “walk away” from the higher federal standard deduction in order to benefit from itemizing at the Maryland level. We urge you to review both deduction methods to determine the lowest overall net tax liability before selecting your deduction method.
