Orange County NC Website
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x <br /> PROBLEM/CONCERN: <br /> Fedbral and State tax returns are quite difficult for many persons <br /> to prepare. Lower income, elderly, handicapped, and non-English <br /> speaking taxpayers cannot afford professional assistance, but they <br /> do need help preparing sample tax returns . <br /> SOLUTION: <br /> Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) provides the framework for <br /> free tax help. The Internal Revenue Service provides VITA. training <br /> materials and instructors . In Orange County a woman who was in <br /> charge of the taxpayer service office for 16 years is now retired <br /> but she continues to instruct the week-long class of 20 -- 30 tax vol- <br /> unteers . <br /> This is the tenth year that the Department on Aging and the Retired <br /> Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) have sponsored the VITA program. <br /> There is no problem in recruiting qualified participants from local <br /> retired professional people and staff members of service agencies . <br /> The volunteers help in a variety of places . This year, they are vol- <br /> unteering at both the Northern and Southern Orange County Senior <br /> Centers, at the Chapel Hill Library, NC Memorial Hospital and Orange <br /> Industries, a sheltered workshop. <br /> Such effort pays off: I.R .S. is very impressed with the quality of <br /> the returns . Also, several hundred persons will be given needed <br /> help. Last year, 350 tax returns were done. As the minimum cost <br /> locally to prepare a simple federal and state return is $18, ,at <br /> least $6,300 was saved for low-income persons . VA <br />