Goodwill of Tulsa area asked their volunteers:  “Why do you volunteer for VITA?”

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Thank you for your volunteer service

We will be putting the returns in maintenance mode at 5:00 am on Thursday, March 15th to conduct a series of updates.

• Fixed the issue where the PSO exclusion was deducting from Gross Distribution (Box 1) instead of the taxable amount (Box 2a)
• Fixed the issue where users were unable to remove the PSO exclusion after saving the initial entry.
  • To remove a PSO exclusion, go back into the 1099-R Box 2a link>Public Safety Officer Exclusion>Enter $0 and then continue
• Zip Code Update
  • 88013 – Las Cruces, NM

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Host:  Rebecca Thompson

UPDATE – 3/23/18 – NY Returns where the TP or SP has an expired Drivers License can now be entered and submitted electronically.

Scenario:  You are preparing a return and the taxpayer/spouse has an expired Drivers License

Concern:  Currently you cannot enter an expired date in the driver’s license section on the e-file page

Solution:  We are making a change to the application that will allow the entry and electronic filing of returns with an expired driver’s license for the state of New York.

Recommendation:  If you have a taxpayer in this situation, the State of New York recommends you hold the return until you can enter the appropriate expired date.  You can use a return tag and the notes section to so you can go back and enter the data.

Update 3/13 — Resolved with morning update

Scenario:  I have added the Ohio Locality RITA 37 form to my state return.  The return will no longer render calculations and/or prints.

Alternative solution:  You will need to delete the State return and add it back.  DO NOT add this form back at this time.  You can create a custom return tag and tag the return.

Solution:  We will resolve this in a future update

First, we want to thank each of you for your dedication and commitment to make this a banner year for return production.  SPEC’s goal is not only to reach 4 million returns for Filing Season 2018, but also serve more taxpayers and touch more lives by offering as many free tax preparation options as possible.  We are confident and poised to accomplish great things this filing season with your assistance.

To help track our progress, we have developed weekly projections to determine where we should be in relation to our 4.0 goal.  Each week this message will be updated with our progress and promote SPEC’s theme: SPEC 4.0, Watch us Grow!

For the week ending 3/4/2018, 356,317 returns were projected to be completed.  We reached an actual count of 313,542 and are almost at the 1.5 million mark. Our cumulative return count is 1,468,961.

While the actual count is below the SPEC projection, there is still time to narrow the gap!

If you have any ideas on ways to help this initiative, we would love to hear from you! Some of you may consider extended hours or days.  Every little bit helps!

Thanks for your engagement and all you are doing to provide free tax assistance to the taxpayers in your community!

SPEC Headquarters

Purpose:  Allows you to quickly view the returns that were prepared at the site in the prior year during a specific time period that have not been prepared during the current year.

Benefit: Helps in planning and helps understand taxpayer retention patterns.

How do I use the report?

(1) Navigate to the Reports menu and click Select on Client Retention Report

(2) Select the EFIN and PRIOR year date range

(3) Click Continue.  The report will generate a list of clients that had returns prepared during that time period that have not had their returns prepared for the current year.