Free tax assistance available for eligible Brooklynites

March 21, 2016 Christopher Malone
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Tax season is upon us! April 15 will be here before many realize and a majority of New Yorkers have yet to file their returns.

To aid taxpayers, Jerry Boone, commissioner of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance (NYSDTF) in partnership with Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, are providing help. On March 8, they announced that there are five free federal and state tax e-filing assistance locations throughout Brooklyn for people to seek help and ask questions. Only Brooklyn residents that make less than $62,000 a year are eligible.

At these sites, located at different corners of the borough, taxpayers will be able to do their taxes using a user-friendly computer program which helps decrease errors and find tax breaks. All sites will feature volunteers from the NYSDTF who will answer questions, find relevant deductions and provide assistance with the computer program.

The program will be held at the Jamaica Bay Brooklyn Public Library (BPL), 9727 Seaview Avenue and the Dekalb BPL, 790 Bushwick Avenue, on Mondays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. On Tuesdays, the assistance will be available at the Red Hook BPL, 7 Wolcott Street, from 1-6 p.m. On Wednesdays and Thursdays, the program will be held at the Coney Island BPL, 1901 Mermaid Avenue, from 1-4 p.m. In addition, the Jamaica Bay BPL will host the program on Thursdays, from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. The Asian Community United Society, 6506 Bay Parkway, will also host the program on Thursdays from 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Eligible Brooklynites who have yet to file their taxes are urged to attend one of these workshops, “Tax season can be challenging for those who lack the financial means to acquire the assistance of an expert who knows all of the relevant credits and deductions, which is why initiatives like these that educate and empower thousands of Brooklynites are so valuable,” said Adams.

According to Boone, this initiative is a great option for taxpayers to save potentially hundreds of dollars that might otherwise be spent on tax preparation services and software.

Go to tax.ny.gov/fsa or call 311 for more info. Details on the IRS’s volunteer tax assistance program is available at irs.gov.

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