FORT DRUM, N.Y. It's that time of year again! As you begin collecting your W-2s, 1099 forms and other tax documents from 2014, don't forget that Fort Drum's Tax Assistance Center is here to help -- until April 15.
The Tax Assistance Center, which has been operational since Jan. 26, provides free tax filing services to active-duty and retired service members and their Families.
"So far, (in the first eight days), we have filed over 700 returns and saved people more than $91,000; that's amazing," said Capt. Ceara L. Riggs, Tax Assistance Center officer in charge and lawyer at the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate.
Riggs and 28 Soldiers make up the Tax Assistance Center team. The Soldiers, representing a cross-section of the installation, are responsible for meeting with clients, preparing returns and filing them with federal and state agencies. At any given time, there are eight preparers on duty.
The Soldiers are borrowed military manpower, and they come from a variety of military occupational specialties, including infantrymen, satellite communication operators and aviation and medical personnel, Riggs added.
"They bring different skill sets and they bring different people into the center, which is nice," she said. "They are able to spread the word to all of the units, family readiness groups and (senior leadership)."
Before the Tax Assistance Center opened, each Soldier completed 40 hours of Internal Revenue Service training, as well as two weeks of hands-on training with Riggs.
"They were going through workbooks and practicing preparing returns," she said.
Since opening just a few weeks ago, Riggs said she has seen a trend in the Soldiers coming to file their taxes.
"There are a lot of young single Soldiers, our primary audience, who don't even realize that they have to file taxes based on their income," she said.
Riggs said that not only do the Soldiers learn about the annual tax filing system, they often come away with money from their return.
While this is only Riggs' third year in the Judge Advocate General Corps, she served as a bankruptcy and foreclosure attorney for before joining the Army. Riggs learned she would be managing the Tax Assistance Center this year while she was still deployed to Afghanistan last year.
"I was so excited," she said. "I didn't even know it was an option for me because for the last two years, senior captains (were selected).
"It's such a rewarding job because all our reports generate numbers that tell us how much money we've saving Soldiers," Riggs added.
Spc. Scolaighe Goebert, 3rd Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, said he volunteered for the opportunity to work at the Tax Assistance Center this year. In addition to the training he received in preparation for this role, he also studied accounting in college.
"I enjoy the puzzle that is inherent with completing tax returns -- there is always something different to learn and take away," he said. "I mostly deal with quality reviewing and troubleshooting conflicts within returns, although I do prepare returns that require special attention, specifically, surviving spouses requiring abatements for returns going back three years; assisting people in acquiring (individual taxpayer identification numbers) for their Family Members; people with itemized rental deductions with depreciation calculations; and complicated dividends income."
Goebert also tries to educate clients about the Military Spouse Residency Relief Act of 2009, which allows spouses to pay taxes to their home state rather than the state they live in due to a permanent-change-of-station move.
Spc. Briana Croal, a signal support systems specialist with 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st BCT, and volunteer at the Tax Assistance Center, said she focuses on ensuring all of the information is correct.
"I found that the most common mistake that I have come across is people reviewing the information that they are inputting," she said. "I usually verify out loud with the client the information I am putting in to make sure it is correct.
"The most rewarding aspect of this job is meeting new people, seeing the smiles on their faces and them being very excited about their return," Croal added. "(They like) knowing that the tax center is available to them every year and they don't have to go somewhere else and have someone to charge them to file their taxes."
One thing that Riggs believes sets the Tax Assistance Center apart from other tax filing businesses is that the facility on post is run by a lawyer and is overseen by the Legal Assistance Office.
"I think it adds some credibility," Riggs said. "We have trained Soldiers preparing the return who can turn to me with questions about interpreting the tax laws and codes applicable to each state, because each state is so different."
The Tax Assistance Center is not managed by a typical finance Soldier or someone who only works with numbers, Riggs added.
"We can all handle numbers, but I'm looking at the statutes and the laws to see what's actually taxable," she said. "I'm looking at state laws. I've been to school, so I know how to interpret laws."
While Riggs has a law degree and has been working in legal assistance in New York for more than a year, she is confident in her "talented and smart" Tax Assistance Center team.
The Army has been offering tax preparation services for roughly 20 years, according to Dwight Austin, Legal Assistance Office chief. When he was a captain in the JAG Corps in the late 1980s, Austin said he and his fellow lawyers would treat tax preparation needs as routine appointments.
"The Army began offering a tax center around 1994 or 1995, and it really took off and became a very successful program," he said.
During the past 20 years, the program has fluctuated between having all civilian preparers and using borrowed military manpower, Austin explained. Around three or four years ago, the program went back to using Soldiers to prepare tax returns.
"While some of the Soldiers volunteer and some are tasked to do it, in the end, most of them love it," Austin said. "It's great for other Soldiers, and they feel good about being able to help them. It's rewarding for everybody."
Be prepared
Currently, appointments can be made up to two weeks in advance by calling 772-6727. Most appointments with basic forms and requirements only take between 15 and 20 minutes, Riggs noted.
Customers should bring any and all documentation related to taxes, including W-2s, 1099s and any previous year's taxes; military ID; and Social Security cards for anyone who will be on the return -- Soldier, spouse and all dependents who will be claimed.
"Also, if your spouse is deployed or unable to be present to sign the taxes, please bring in a copy of your notarized power of attorney," Riggs said.
General and special powers of attorney can be issued at the Legal Assistance Office at Clark Hall on a walk-in basis.
There are circumstances when the Tax Assistance Center cannot file for customers, Riggs said. The center cannot accept claims for individuals who:
*Own a business (Family Child Care providers are the exception);
*Need cancellation of debt services for bankruptcy or foreclosures;
*Own more than two rental properties; or
*Have more than 10 stock transactions (buying, selling, etc.).
The Tax Assistance Center also provides a drop-off service for basic returns. Customers are eligible for drop-off service if the individual(s):
*Is filing single or are married filing jointly;
*Not claiming dependents;
*Not claiming any adjustments to income other than Earned Income Credit, including student loan interest, IRA contributions, alimony, etc.;
*Are under the age of 65 and not blind;
*Prove gross income less than $100,000 for the tax year if married filing jointly;
*Had no income other than wages, salaries, tips or unemployment compensation; and
*Did not receive more than $1,500 in interest.
The Tax Assistance Center, which is located in Bldg. 120 on the corner of Lewis Avenue and First Street West, is open from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. The facility is closed on holidays. For more information about the Tax Assistance Center, call 772-3735. For appointments, call 772-6727.
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