Tax season is once again upon us and I would like to remind Town of Hempstead residents of a wonderful, free tax assistance program we have available for seniors.

The Town of Hempstead Department of Senior Enrichment, in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service, offers a program called VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance). Through this program, senior citizen volunteers are trained to assist other seniors complete their basic income tax returns.

Residents can make appointments for tax assistance through their local senior center, senior club or public library (tax filing deadline is April 15). When the time for the VITA appointment arrives seniors will need to bring their tax forms from the previous year, wage and/or pension reports (W-2 and/or W-2P), all 1099 forms for interest and dividends, their 2001 year-end Social Security forms and real estate tax papers. Other pertinent information that seniors may want to bring includes medical and dental bills, travel mileage from home to the doctor's office and the cost of medical prescriptions. This information could be useful in itemizing deductions.

This is an extremely beneficial program intended to meet the special needs of the town's senior population. I encourage all Town of Hempstead seniors to take advantage of this opportunity. To find out more about how to utilize the VITA program, please contact the Town of Hempstead Department of Senior Enrichment at 485-8100.