Tax-Time Helpers: MT VITA E-News
Montana VITA Partnership 
April 4, 2014  
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Montana Department
of Revenue


April Greetings to everyone!

When I saw an April date on a tax return this week my first reaction was that the preparer made a mistake- but it was me that got it wrong. April is here and many of us are thrilled to be wrapping up the season. I've also heard from some of you that are a bit bummed with the prospect of not seeing or speaking to fellow volunteers, site coordinators and partners. Never fear- we will be with you year-round! We look forward to working with you next year, and to staying in contact during the off-season to get your feedback and work on making the program even stronger moving forward.

As we enter the last few weeks of the season, please remember to check with your Site Coordinator to make sure you are up on any end-of-season procedures. Please also remember that many of the training materials are 'Evergreen' meaning that they should be kept for next season since new ones won't be provided to returning volunteers.

Thanks for all you do to make the program possible- we look forward to celebrating our successes with you at the end of the season.

Best regards,

Carin & Team VITA
VITA Numbers Update

This year's tax season is drawing to a close, and it's clear that volunteers at our Montana VITA Partnership (MVP) sites across the state have been busy.

Total returns filed as of April 1

4,908

Total returns filed last week

485

MVP filing goal for 2014

6,000 tax returns

Although there's only 11 days left, we can still reach the goal! Please talk up the VITA Program and encourage people, who are filing on their own to use our www.myfreetaxes.com/montanacus site to file their Federal and Montana returns free of charge while helping the MVP meet our filing goal. Thanks for your support!

 

My First VITA Season

As the season draws to a close many of us are taking the rare moments of downtime to reflect back on the season. With that in mind I asked one of our steadfast quality reviewers, Bo Antila, to share some things he learned this season. Bo is a junior at Carroll College in Helena, majoring in Accounting and plans on earning his CPA certificate from MSU. Here are a few (of the many!) things he has learned during his first season with the VITA Program.

         Students may be able to receive an education credit for qualified expenses including those reported on Form 1098T: Tuition Statement.

         Parents/Guardians are able to the Dependent Care Credit on their return if they are paying for child care that allows them to work.

         Tribal members' income may be exempt from Montana tax if they meet certain guidelines.

         Cancellation of debt has tax consequences- when a client has had credit card debt cancelled it is reported as income on the 1040.

We want to hear from you! If you would like to share your insights or have an idea for a topic to cover in the newsletter please contact Carin.

About Us

 

The Montana VITA Partnership is a coalition of organizations and community groups working with volunteers to provide free tax services throughout Montana. Primary coalition partners include Montana Credit Unions for Community Development, Opportunity Link, Inc, Community Action Partnership of NW MT, United Way of Yellowstone County, District 7 HRDC (Billings), and District IX HRDC (Bozeman).