Mismatch on 1099-INT when boxes 15 and 16 State and State identification have values but no value in Box 17 State Tax Withheld

[alw24]

When going through Smart Check, I keep getting "Check This Entry" on a 1099-INT because the form has data State and State Identification number boxes (15 and 16) but no data in Box 17 State Tax Withheld.  If I delete the data in box 16 and 17 the error goes away but then my entries don't match the 1099-INT.  I checked last year's form from the same institution and Boxes 15, 16 and 17 were filled out the same as this year and I didn't get any error message last year. 

How do I address this problem?

[MindyB]

If there is no data in Box 17, you should leave boxes 15-17 blank. There's nothing you need to report in boxes 15 through 17 if there was no state tax withheld.

[alw24]

Thanks for the information. I will make the changes.