This is from a couple of years ago, but I thought it postworthy.
Curious if an explanation was found for the ding.
Before giving me any prior notification whatsoever, the State of Calfornia garnisheed my wages in the amount of about $6.00. The accountant for my employer asked me why I didn't pay my state income tax, and I responded by saying I owed no income tax and didn't know anything about any claims from the State of California.
When I tries to contact the state on the telephone and in person, they refused to answer the telephone for hours and days at a time and refused to see me in person unless sit was about business taxes.
When I sent letters with a complaint, they went unanswered. I finally managed to contact their offices by telephone, but i was told I had owed no state income taxes. When asked why they garnisheed the wages, they said that was a different office and department. After long efforts to contact that office and many refusals to discuss anything, I finally got someone to report that their office garnisheed my wages because the other office said I owned the income tax, and I would d have to contact the other office. I responded by saying I had already talked to the other office and they said they couldn't do anything because I never owed such an income tax and would have to talk to you to straighten out the problem. No, they said, they couldn't do anything until the other office reported I did not own the income tax. And as it went around and around with the two office pointing fingers of blame at each other for months. Finally I got someone on the telephone who unofficially tried to help and told me who I could write to ask for a their personal look into the problem. So, I wrote the letter, and many weeks later I finally received a refund check for the $6.00, but not for the long distance telephone charges and postage of many times that amount needed to get them to acknowledge and do something about the complaint.
Ultimately, I was told the problem occurred because one office was supposed to record the income tax liabilities and the other office was supposed to handle the accounts receivable, and the two offices failed and refused to communicate with each other to reconcile the taxpayer’s account and record the correct balance.