St. Austin Center Hosts Popular Free Tax Prep Events

By Alan Peralta, St. Austin Center Programs and Operations Manager

With the arrival of tax season, many people fall prey to street advertisements promising huge tax refunds. Unfortunately, these promotions are sometimes offered by predatory tax preparers or other unqualified persons to lure vulnerable clients.  Once customers take the bait, they are charged hundreds of dollars in service fees or exorbitant interest rates on loans advancing their refunds.  The reality is many filers have annual earnings that qualify them for free tax preparation services from many providers. One of them is Baker Ripley, a Houston nonprofit, which has partnered with us to bring free tax preparation to St. Austin Center. More than 50 people have benefited from this free service over the last several weeks. A fourth and final tax preparation event is scheduled Friday, March 28th.
I interviewed a long-time client about his reasons for returning to St. Austin Center for tax services. He recounted his experience as a fraud victim, having once spent hundreds of dollars on a simple tax return. He was appreciative for having discovered this service through Casa San José and St. Austin Center. He said he would continue to visit St. Austin Center in future tax seasons and would keep recommending it to others. His daughter, who was a first-time participant this year, successfully completed her taxes at no cost. She was pleased, smiling as she looked forward to her reimbursement. The last opportunity for tax preparation at St. Austin Center is March 28th between the hours of 10 AM and 4 PM. To qualify for the free service, a single filer must earn no more than $58,000.