The IRS will abate interest and any late filing or late payment penalties that would otherwise apply. This relief includes the Sept. 15 due date for estimated taxes and for calendar-year corporate returns with automatic extensions

The disaster areas designated for individual relief include:

• 31 Louisiana parishes: Acadia, Ascension, Assumption, Calcasieu, Cameron, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Pointe Coupee, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John, St. Mary, St. Martin, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Vermilion, Washington, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana;
• 15 Mississippi counties: Amite, Forrest, George, Greene, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Lamar, Marion, Pearl River, Perry, Pike, Stone, Walthall, and Wilkinson; and
• Three Alabama counties: Baldwin, Mobile and Washington.

Among the tax relief details are the following:

• The Federal Tax Deposit (FTD) Penalty Waiver Period for employment and excise tax deposits is Aug. 29 – Sept. 23, 2005.
• The Extension Period for returns and other tax payments is Aug. 29 – Oct. 31, 2005.
• The Disaster Designation for this area is "Hurricane Katrina" — taxpayers mark certain relief-related forms with this designation in red.

Further disaster-related tax relief information can be found on IRS.gov, including Publication 547, which explains how to figure and claim a disaster loss, and Publication 2194B for businesses.