State, nonprofit groups offer free tax help for Montanans

By JENNIFER McKEE Missoulian State Bureau

HELENA - The Montana Department of Revenue and a group of nonprofit partners are urging Montanans to file their income taxes electronically this year to get faster rebates and, in many cases, free tax help.

Thanks to last-minute changes to the U.S. tax code, people who file their federal income tax returns through the mail could wait six to 10 weeks or longer for their tax refunds, deputy revenue director David Hunter told a Thursday press conference.

In contrast, people who file their taxes electronically could have their refunds in as soon as five days.

Hunter and the group, which includes Montana credit unions, Montana Legal Services Association, the Consumer Credit Counseling Service and Rural Dynamics of Montana, also urged Montanans to check out http://www.montanafreefile.org, a Web site that includes a host of information on free tax help for qualifying filers - as well as how to file taxes electronically.

Households that make less than $39,000 qualify for free tax preparation. Free tax preparation sites are available around the state, said Karen Heisler, asset development director of Rural Dynamics Inc., one of the groups working with the state on http://MontanaFreeFile.org. More information about free tax help is available on the Web site, she said.

In Montana, Hunter said, all taxpayers may file electronically for free, provided they use certain tax forms, like the 2EZ, a simple tax filing form. More complicated tax returns may not be filed electronically for free.

Federal rules, however, prohibit people in households earning more than $52,000 a year to file their federal taxes electronically for free, regardless of how simple the returns may be.

MontanaFreeFile was developed in 2005 as a one-stop clearinghouse for state tax information, particularly information on how low- and moderate-income Montanans can get help preparing and filing their taxes and on tax credits that might be available to them.

For example, Heisler said, the federal earned income tax credit is available only to people with low to moderate incomes. Some people who don't earn enough to be forced to file a tax return are still eligible for the return. Even people who haven't filed taxes for up to three years can still file and get the credit for the last three years.

Heisler said she knows of people who, with free help, filed three years worth of tax returns and got up to $13,000 in refunds.

"It's a lot of money," she said.

Additionally, the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) is providing free tax help for any filer, regardless of income. AARP tax help locations are listed on the MontanaFreeFile Web site.