500 people get duplicate tax refund checks, can keep only 1

Five hundred Rhode Island residents have received duplicate tax refund checks totaling $364,000.

A state official says human error is to blame.

The checks were sent in a group of refunds mailed Friday. The checks people received are identical, but only one of the two checks can be cashed.

The Rhode Island Department of Administration and the Department of Revenue say they expect no financial impact. They say they're working to prevent duplicate checks from being mailed again.

Department of Administration policy director Allison Rogers says people can cash one check and return the other to the state, along with a brief explanation.