LIHU‘E — The clock is ticking on Tax Day, which falls on April 18. Hawai‘i state taxes are due on April 20.
Today is Thursday, and the Tax-Aide volunteers are at the Kaumakani Neighborhood Center. On Monday, March 27, the preparers will be at the Hanapepe Public Library.
The AARP Foundation Tax-Aide service provides in-person, free of charge tax assistance to anyone, with a special focus on taxpayers who are over 50 years old, or have low to moderate income.
Brian Kasperek and Coleen Kasperek have been coordinating the Tax-Aide program on Kaua‘i for more than 20 years, and said this year the Tax-Aide program is currently not accepting appointments. This means people needing the services of the specially-trained, IRS-certified Tax-Aide volunteer tax preparers need to show up at the designated sites for service on a first-come-first-serve basis.
“We had a lady client who said she checked with AARP, and they told her they were not taking appointments,” Brian Kasperek said. “Yes, we are doing taxes on a first-come-first-serve basis. We’re not taking appointments.”
“Since we’ve started doing this, our best year we served more than 450 people,” he said. “This year, we are below 400 people, and we’ve added more volunteer tax preparers.”
Following the Hanapepe Public Library availability on March 27, Tax-Aide volunteers will be at the Lihu‘e Neighborhood Center on Tuesday, March 28.
The group returns to the Hanapepe Public Library on Monday, April 3, and the Lihu‘e Neighborhood Center on Tuesday, April 4, to complete this year’s cycle of tax assistance.
•••
Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
