Putnam Library Taking Tax Prep Appointments February 2

Tax Preparation Returns to the Putnam County Library this year after taking a year off due to the pandemic.

Library Director Phil Schaller said they’ve partnered with AARP and believes this years set up will have proper COVID protocols. Schaller said the biggest change is that tax prep will be by appointment only on Wednesday and Thursday.

“Generally, you can go home, they’re going to say there’s a 24-hour turnaround,” Schaller said. “They’ll have your documents back to you within 24 hours. They’ll work on them here while you are safely at home. They will contact you to let you know when you can come and pick them back up.”

Schaller said there is only one way to make appointments and that is by calling 931-310-3169 and the library will redirect you back to that number. Appointments can start being made on February 2nd.

“I will put out the caveat that they are not tax professionals, they are just volunteers,” Schaller said. “They tend to shy away from really complicated taxes. If you have subcontracting and dividends and all sorts of crazy stuff, they’ll tend to shy away from that stuff.”

Schaller said that the target audience is seniors since the library is partnering with AARP. However, he said anyone can get help and he knows the need is out there.

“We got a bunch of calls last year of people who desperately wanted help doing their taxes,” Schaller said. “Taxes are a complicated, tricky thing and people need help. Especially a lot of seniors need help navigating some of that information.”

Tax Prep will officially begin at the Putnam County Library on February 17, lasting until April 8. Schaller said the Wednesday and Thursday appointments will run from 9:00 AM until 5:00 PM.