Would you like to help a Chelsea senior or low-income area resident file their taxes?
If so, please consider becoming a tax preparation volunteer.
The local coordinator is Lynn Fox and she can be reached at 475-2453.
We’re looking for compassionate and friendly individuals to join our volunteer team this upcoming tax season. AARP Foundation Tax-Aide provides free tax-filing help to those who need it most. There’s a role for everyone and training is provided.
The program is overseen jointly by the AARP Foundation and the IRS and our primary target population is lower-income senior citizens.
Volunteer preparers receive training and materials from the AARP/IRS and must pass anon-line test demonstrating a basic knowledge of tax law (open book) to be certified to work in the program.
There are two sets of live training. First-year volunteers have 3 days of training in December (scheduled for Dec 11, 12, and 14, 2017) and 2 days in January 2018 (Jan. 8-9), then are joined by the returning volunteers for Jan 10-12.
The training starts with an introduction to the tax preparation software (we use TaxSlayer) and then moves into some of the common federal and MI situations that come up and cover changes in the tax laws for the new year.
These trainings are mandatory (i.e., required by AARP/IRS to be certified).
We prepare taxes at the Ypsilanti library, in Saline, in Chelsea, and at three locations in Ann Arbor from the beginning of February through early April.
Each site is usually open 1 weekday per week for 4 to 8 hours. Anywhere from 4 to 10 preparers work at any one time at each site. In aggregate, there are about 25 volunteers serving the 6 sites. Most volunteers work a couple of sites/days, but some less, some more. You can select one or more locations depending on your availability.
There is substantial demand for our services so clients usually make reservations and the number of reservations we can accept depends on the number of volunteers that will be at the site that day. This means that although volunteers can work as much or as little as their schedules allow, volunteers must commit to work the days and times for which they sign up.
For more information, call Lynn Fox at 475-2453 or go to www.aarpfoundation.org/taxaide.
