Press-Republican

Seniors

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Tax-Aide, sponsored by the AARP Foundation and the IRS. Free tax-assistance service for low- and middle-income taxpayers.

WHEN: Walk-in (first come, first served) hours in January and February are from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Closed on Presidents Day, Feb. 20. In March, the site will be closed Mondays and Tuesdays. In April, there are no Monday, Tuesday and Saturday hours. Attendees must arrive a half hour before closing time.

WHERE: Senior Center, North Catherine Street, Plattsburgh.

PHONE: 335-8599 during operating hours.

Related Photos

  • Bruce Moore, a volunteer tax preparer, helps Stephen Baker complete his 2011 taxes at the Senior Center in Plattsburgh. Volunteers of Tax-Aide, the AARP Foundation and IRS-sponsored tax-assistance service, are trained and certified to prepare tax returns for the community. The Plattsburgh site, which is located at the Senior Center, is one of the state's largest, filing more than 3,000 tax returns last year. Staff Photo / Kelli Catana

    taxes1_1-24-12

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January 25, 2012

Getting by with a little tax aid

Tax-assistance service open at Plattsburgh Senior Center

ROBIN CAUDELL Press-Republican

PLATTSBURGH — Tax-Aide is one of the free things in life that is a budget saver this time of year.

The volunteer-run tax-assistance service, the nation's largest, is sponsored by the AARP Foundation and the IRS. In Plattsburgh, low- and middle-income taxpayers can walk right in, no appointment necessary, to access services at the Senior Center on North Catherine Street.

Taxpayers are assisted on a first-come, first-served basis and must arrive during scheduled hours.

"Times are important because people want to know when they can come," said Judith Heintz, a Tax-Aide volunteer. "There are no appointments. It's completely walk-in. They need to know that."

To get full service, taxpayers should arrive no later than a half hour before posted closing time.

"Those are big concerns in the winter weather," Heintz said.

Taxpayers need to bring with them their filed 2010 taxes.

"It's really helpful," Heintz said. "They need to bring a Social Security card. A Social Security document or card is important and all of their tax documents. The seniors don't often get everything until the first of February. If they come the next couple of weeks, they can't be served if they don't have all of their tax documents."

More than 3,000 taxpayers filed taxes with the volunteers, certified and trained by the IRS, at the Plattsburgh site last year.

This tax season, there is no stimulus money, and energy-savings adjustments have been curtailed.

"They are not gone," Heintz said. "People should bring the material with them, but don't expect to have big numbers back."

Another change impacting seniors is that Tax-Aide cannot file a return for those who are not required by the federal government to file. However, Tax-Aide will enter a taxpayer's information on a tax form and print it out if it is needed to apply for the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP).

"We will still do that for people who desperately need that written copy," Heintz said.

Email Robin Caudell at: rcaudell@pressrepublican.com

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