Workers who are receiving W- 2 forms from their employers this winter showing no federal tax withheld for year 2009 are actually seeing the results of a federal stimulus package that's been doled out to workers in weekly increments. The plan was announced last February and workers did not need to apply or fill out a special tax form to participate. Instead, employers handled the change.

Remember the $600 stimulus check sent to workers in the spring of 2008? The 2009 stimulus could be likened to that program, explained Ryan Willobee of Willobee and Willobee accounting in St. Ignace, except the money was not paid in one lump sum, but in the form of lower taxes collected each week.

Workers won't be on the hook to pay the money back this year at tax time, Mr. Willobee said, but some may see smaller refunds this year than usual, because they've already paid less money in taxes.

"We've gotten lots of questions about it," he said. "There was a reduced amount of federal withholding in everyone's paycheck."

Changes in the tax tables were announced in February 2009 to put more take-home pay in the pockets of American workers beginning last spring, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The change also incorporated the Making Work Pay program, another one of the key tax provisions in that federal act. Available for tax years 2009 and 2010, the Making Work Pay credit is 6.2% of a taxpayers earned income, with up to $800 allowed for a married couple filing a joint return and up to $400 for other taxpayers. Most workers will qualify for the maximum credit, according to the Internal Revenue Service. The credit is refundable, meaning people can get it even if they owe no tax. The credit is phased out for higher income taxpayers, such as those with single adjusted gross income of $75,000 to $95,000.