Editorial: Take advantage of free tax help in Dalton

Published 10:53 am Thursday, February 1, 2018

The U.S. tax code is several thousand pages — and that’s just the table of contents.

While we make the comment in jest, the tax code is nonetheless a hulking document that can be intimidating as we work to file our state and federal income taxes. On top of the sheer size, there are tax code changes each year that can cause serious head-scratching.

Our community is fortunate to have two free tax services to help us.

• The AARP Foundation’s Tax-Aide program offers free tax assistance and preparation at the Dalton-Whitfield County Public Library on Tuesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Saturdays at the Mack Gaston Community Center from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The tax help is available on those days through April 17.

• Georgia United Credit Union, Dalton State College and the Internal Revenue Service have teamed up for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program once again. The program offers free tax return assistance to people with low to moderate incomes. Sessions are available on Friday nights and Saturdays through March 17 at the Georgia United Credit Union branch at 605 Calhoun St.

For more information on these programs, check out articles in today’s Daily Citizen-News.

The IRS began accepting tax returns on Monday. This year, the IRS expects nearly 155 million individual tax returns will be filed.

It’s never too early for a reminder that the tax filing deadline this year is Tuesday, April 17. You get a two-day reprieve as the traditional deadline is April 15. Since April 15 falls on a Sunday, the deadline would usually be moved to the next day. But since Monday, April 16, is Emancipation Day — a legal holiday in the District of Columbia — the nation’s filing deadline moves back another day. Tax law dictates that legal holidays in the District of Columbia affect the nationwide filing deadline.

We appreciate the many volunteers who assist area residents with their taxes, and we thank the number of groups that chip in. We recommend you take advantage of their free services.