It’s tax season and the good news in this inescapable fact of life is that with the onset of February, the AARP Foundation’s Tax-Aide program will once again be offering seniors and low-income residents free assistance with filing their taxes at various East County locations.
The program also helps with electronic filing. As the nation’s largest volunteer-based free tax preparation program, AARP’s Tax-Aide has been in place since 1968, assisting more than 50 million qualifying individuals with the preparation of their income tax returns.
It’s tax season and the good news in this inescapable fact of life is that with the onset of February, the AARP Foundation’s Tax-Aide program will once again be offering seniors and low-income residents free assistance with filing their taxes at various East County locations.
The program also helps with electronic filing. As the nation’s largest volunteer-based free tax preparation program, AARP’s Tax-Aide has been in place since 1968, assisting more than 50 million qualifying individuals with the preparation of their income tax returns.
At La Mesa’s Adult Enrichment Center, recreation supervisor Kathy Tinsley explained that the program will get under way this Friday, Feb.8, by first assisting senior members of the center and senior residents of La Mesa until March 1. After that it will branch out to offer assistance until April 13 to all who qualify. Appointments are required and the volunteer staff will provide assistance on Friday and Saturday. Tinsley stated, “The program is very popular so it’s not unusual for us to be booked solid, that’s why I highly encourage anyone interested to phone the center to schedule an appointment. Every week we service well over 100 people and we also refer those who can’t come in on the days we operate to the Joan Kroc Center and the El Cajon library. We also refer people to the 211 info line for help with locating additional participating centers in East County.”
According to AARP, seniors are 60 years of age or older, however persons of other ages of low to moderate incomes are welcome to participate in the program. However, they state that they don’t have a specific income limit. The program assists with simpler tax form preparation and is not intended for highly complex filing.
Volunteers providing the free service from Feb. 1 through April 15 in East County will staff the following locations:
•Alpine Senior Center, 1830 Alpine Blvd., (619) 445-7330
•College Avenue Senior Center, 4855 College Ave., San Diego, (619) 583-3300
•Edgemoor Hospital, 655 Park Center Drive, Santee, (619) 873-7887
•El Cajon Public Library, 201 E. Douglas Ave., El Cajon, (619) 401-7645
•La Mesa Adult Enrichment Center, 8450 La Mesa Blvd., La Mesa, (619) 464-0505
•Lemon Grove Senior Center, 8235 Mt. Vernon St., Lemon Grove, (619) 337-1425
•Salvation Army Nutrition Center, 1011 E. Main St., El Cajon (619) 440-2457
East County seniors and low- income residents are encouraged to phone participating centers in order to schedule appointments. Anyone filing jointly should accompany their partners on appointments.
Mick Michels, a member of the Square Dance Team at La Mesa’s Senior Enrichment Center, summarized, “Although I’ve not personally used the free tax preparation service, some fellow members on the Square Dance Team have over the years, and they have been very happy with it,” adding, “It’s a wonderful resource provided by the dedicated volunteers to help serve our community.”
