Capt. Jules Szanton invites active duty, activated reservists, military retirees and their family members to go to the center and get their taxes done for free starting Monday. David Burge/El Paso Times
Soldiers and military families already live a pretty stressful existence with all the moves, training and potential deployments.
Throw tax-filing season into the mix, and it’s enough to make anyone’s blood pressure spike.
To help alleviate that stress, improve readiness and say “thank you” to present and past service members, the Fort Bliss Tax Center will open for the season at 9 a.m. Monday.
The center is located at 122 Slater Road and will stay open through April 17, which is this year’s tax-filing deadline.
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The center, run as an annual project by the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, provides free federal and state tax-preparation services to active duty, activated reservists, military retirees and their families. All branches are welcome.
“The Army’s number one priority is readiness,” said Capt. Jules Szanton, the officer in charge of the tax center this year. “Financial readiness is an important part of readiness. We need to make sure that soldiers who are fighting or preparing to fight don’t have to worry about getting a letter from the IRS saying they owe taxes.”
Last year, the center prepared 5,300 returns, saving members of the Fort Bliss community an estimated $1.4 million in tax-preparation fees, said Szanton, an Army lawyer from Portland, Maine.
The tax center’s clients also received $8 million in refunds, he added.
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The center is manned by 25 soldiers who have been recommended by their command teams and seven civilian volunteers.
Szanton said they have all gone through a two-week course given by a senior tax consultant with the Internal Revenue Service and have been certified in four different types of tax preparation: basic, advanced, military and international.
While Texas doesn’t have a state income tax, many soldiers and families at Fort Bliss still maintain their legal residence in another state, and the tax center is more than capable of handling those returns too, he added.
Each return prepared at the center goes through a quality review before it is filed. It is double-checked to make sure that numbers aren’t transposed and that soldiers and other members of the military community are getting all the credits and deductions they are entitled to, Szanton said.
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Christine Hopkins, from Fort Wayne, Ind., is an Army spouse whose professional background is as an enrolled agent. She is one of the civilian volunteers who are helping out at the tax center this year.
“I like to give back where I can,” Hopkins said.
Sgt. 1st Class Betsy Vargas is the tax center’s top enlisted soldier. Vargas, from Union City, N.J., said the center provides high-quality returns that can benefit soldiers, retirees and family members.
“It benefits everyone, and you see the bigger picture when you are on this side of it,” said Vargas, who is normally a geospatial analyst with Headquarters and Headquarters Company with 3rd Brigade.
David Burge may be reached at 546-6126; dburge@elpasotimes.com; @dburge1962 on Twitter.
Fort Bliss Tax Center
Where: 122 Slater Road.
When: Opens for season at 9 a.m. Monday and will stay open through April 17.
Who: Serves active duty, activated reservists on orders for more than 30 days, military retirees and family members.
Cost: Free.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Closed on Sundays and federal holidays. Center uses a Saturday schedule on training holidays.
Walk-in service: Available from 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday. Appointments are necessary during remaining hours.
Information, appointments: 568-1040 (Number gets activated Friday).