[Libs-Or] Tax forms

Thu Mar 13 10:40:08 PDT 2014

My personal philosophy is that tax time may be the only time of the year that some people use the library so I try to make the transaction helpful and positive. I sheepdog the tax forms at the Oregon City Public Library, along with being the adult reference librarian. If we don’t have a form then we will print it out for the patron, for free, and I’m always amazed at how happy this makes people. We provide Oregon forms and flyers for patrons on how to access the Oregon instructions, order a set of Oregon instruction booklets that people can use in the library, and will even occasionally email the state for materials on behalf of non-Internet users, such as the elderly. On our tax table I provide some aids to answering that “what form” question. Our patron base is very “do-it-yourself” oriented and also has a large population of people who cannot afford computers, Internet access and printers at home. Yes, it’s sometimes very aggravating, with late tax forms and patrons who blame us for not having the forms that haven’t even been produced but usually people leave happy. 
Sue 

Sue Adams, Reference Librarian 
sadams at orcity.org 
Oregon City Public Library 
606 John Adams St. 
Oregon City, Oregon 97045 
503-657-8269 ext. 1017 Direct phone 
503-657-3702 fax 
Website: www.orcity.org/library 
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----- Original Message -----

From: "Edith Fuller" <efuller at teleport.com> 
To: libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us 
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2014 9:33:01 AM 
Subject: Re: [Libs-Or] Tax forms 

Getting forms from the web is one thing, printing off booklets and other instructions is quite another, especially for patrons with minimal computers and/or with slower connections. 

Edith Fuller, Professional Library, Portland Public Schools, retired. 

From: Arlene Weible 
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2014 8:42 AM 
To: libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us 
Subject: Re: [Libs-Or] Tax forms 

The IRS is discouraging distribution of paper forms through any outlets in favor of on-demand printing from their web site: http://www.irs.gov/Forms-&-Pubs This is likely why there are so many delays in distribution. They do maintain a schedule for shipping forms that may be helpful: http://www.irs.gov/uac/Shipping-Information-Tax-Products 

ALA maintains a liaison relationship with the IRS TFOP program, so if anyone wants to provide information about the value of the form distribution program through that liaison, I would be happy to put you in touch with the right contact. 

Also, if you have patrons who want to channel their frustration, the IRS’ Taxpayer Advocacy Panel is currently seeks members from Oregon. More details can be found at: http://www.improveirs.org/tapapply.aspx 

--Arlene 

Arlene Weible 
Electronic Services Consultant 
Oregon Federal Regional Depository Coordinator 
Library Development Services 
Oregon State Library 
250 Winter St NE 
Salem OR, 97301 
503-378-5020 
arlene.weible at state.or.us 
http://www.oregon.gov/osl/LD/Pages/technology/sdlp/index.aspx 

From: Libs-Or [mailto:libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us] On Behalf Of Jackie May 
Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 7:03 PM 
To: Buzzy Nielsen; libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us 
Subject: Re: [Libs-Or] Tax forms 

We still get the federal forms and booklets at the Jefferson County Library District. We do not get any Oregon tax forms or booklets, but provide a toll free number and the website address for patrons to order their own items. 
We are similar in size to the HR library population. There are many patrons here who do not have computers at home on which to file their tax returns. We get people coming in the first week of January to get tax forms, and they are rather upset when we don't have the forms on demand. 
In previous years, the tax season was something looked upon by staff with "dread", because patrons would ask us all kinds of questions. The ubiquitous "Which forms do I need?" is always a jaw-dropper. Fortunately, after years of explaining that "we are not allowed to give tax advice", people stopped asking. 
The Post Office has stopped carrying the forms in their lobby as well, since the government is now charging the Post Office for the forms. We are the last gasp in Jefferson County for tax forms! 
Jackie 

On Wed, Mar 12, 2014 at 4:26 PM, Buzzy Nielsen < buzzy at hoodriverlibrary.org > wrote: 

Hi everyone, 

Have any of you elected to no longer stock tax forms/booklets at your library? A combination of factors is making a few of us start to rethink whether it's worth the staff time to provide this service. 

    1. The extreme lateness of the forms the past few years, making patrons somewhat annoyed. 
    2. The quickly-dwindling number of patrons who actually use the paper forms. 
    3. The fact that our tax forms got delivered to an unknown alternate address that UPS can't seem to tell us where. 
    4. The amount of staff time trying to deal with problems 1-3. 

If your library elected not to have forms/booklets, how did your community react? Were there other places where people could get the forms? I'd love to hear your experiences. 
Cheers! 
Buzzy 

************************************ 
Library Director 
Hood River County Library District 
502 State Street 
Hood River, Oregon 97031 
541-387-7062 
http://hoodriverlibrary.org 

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-- 

Jackie J. May 
Interlibrary Loans 
Jefferson County Library District 
241 SE 7th Street 
Madras, OR 97741 
541-475-3351, ext. 307 
541-475-7434 (fax) 
ORBIS Code #81 

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