MG WILLIAM F. DEAN CHAPTER
305 Sequoia Terrace, Danville, CA 94506-4545, CA 84506
925/736-4738 or 925/736-5587, email: gwtitus@comcast.net
CHAPTER PRESIDENT’S LETTER JAN - MAR 2008
An Update
Since the last newsletter was written in the
September/October time frame, the chapter
membership was not advised of the many
honors the chapter was awarded during the
last Annual Meeting in October 2007. At the
risk of sounding conceited, permit me to
state that we “cleaned up” - again! Our
chapter flag now carries twenty-seven (27)
more streamers than the Army flag,
no mean feat and all of it attributable to
the chapter leadership and its loyal
members. Thank you, one and all.
On a personal note, MG (ret) G. Walter
Titus, the chapter’s Chairman of the General
Officers Advisory Committee, was laid to
rest in Arlington National Cemetery on 09
October 2007.
His interment was with full military honors
including a salute battery, a firing
detachment, a full military band, the honor
detachment, the caisson with six horses, the
rider less horse with inverted stirrups, a
piper in full regalia, the bugler, the
military chaplain and an escorted Arlington
Lady who delivered the
condolences of the president to me.
It was as breathtakingly beautiful a
protocol and tradition rich affair as it was
sad. It was a day which neither any of the
attending mourners or I will ever forget.
To all the friends who accompanied me on
Walter’s final journey, you have my deep
gratitude.
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It IS
Tax Time
We are just a few weeks away from the
dreaded date: 15 April, when our taxes are
due. So, to give you some options, here is
an article I found in BOTTOM LINE. It might
help you with your task.
10 Ways the IRS Web Site Can
Help You
Tax Hotline interviewed James Glass,
a tax attorney based in
New York City
The IRS Web site, www.irs.gov, is the single
most valuable tax management resource for
federal taxes. Here are 10 ways it can help
you prepare your tax return and manage your
taxes year-round.
1. Free File. Up to 95 million taxpayers,
70% of all, will be able to prepare and file
their tax returns for free this year under
the Free File program, which is a joint
effort of the IRS and leading tax return
preparation businesses.
Taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes
(AGIs), single or joint, of $52,000 or less
are eligible to use Free File to prepare
their tax returns.
How it works: You use the exact same
computerized tax return preparation programs
and filing services that the major tax
preparation firms charge their customers for
-- but at no cost.
To do so, you must click on the Free File
link on the IRS Web page. This will take you
to a Web page that asks questions to
determine your eligibility, then lists
offerings from different commercial tax
preparation firms, and provides instructions
on how to use them.
Not all the services will be available to
everybody -- individual providers can target
the services they offer to particular groups
(such as members of the military, persons at
specific income levels, or people who live
in specific geographic areas).
But, if your AGI does not exceed $52,000,
there will be a free filing service for you
-- and probably more than one to choose
from.
User satisfaction: In a survey of last
year's Free File users, 94% said that they
found it easy to use and intend to use it
again this year.
2. Late tax law and filing news. Several
deductions and other tax breaks that can be
claimed don't appear on tax returns because
Congress renewed or enacted them late in the
year, after tax return forms were sent out
for printing.
Example: The federal deduction for state and
local sales taxes.
The IRS Web site tells all about these and
provides instructions for claiming them on
your tax return.
To reach this information on the IRS home
page, click on "1040 Central," then, go to
"Tax Law Changes."
The "1040 Central" page will also provide
other late-breaking news for filers -- such
as errors discovered in tax forms and
glitches in service center return processing
-- and advise taxpayers what actions to
take, if any.
3. Electronic filing, refunds, and payments.
Benefits...
Electronic filing eliminates almost all of
the math and paperwork errors that can delay
the processing of paper returns. E-filers
also receive an electronic receipt from the
IRS that proves that their returns were
received -- saving the bother and cost of
getting a certified mail receipt.
Electronic deposit of tax refunds directly
into your bank account gets them to you
faster than by mail, with no risk that they
will be lost in the mail or stolen. A refund
can be sent electronically to an IRA or
health savings account instead of a regular
bank account -- or be split among up to
three of them.
Electronic transfers of tax payments let
you keep payment funds in your own account
until the last minute, while guaranteeing
that the IRS receives them on time.
All kinds of payments -- quarterly estimated
taxes, payroll taxes, business taxes, etc. -
- could be made electronically, year-round.
Electronic management of them provides many
benefits.
Examples: You can time payments to be made
automatically... manage your tax accounts
from anywhere at any time, day or night...
integrate payment records with computerized
bookkeeping packages so that payments are
automatically recorded in your books.
To learn about all of these options, click
on the E-File logo on the IRS home page.
4. Audit-proof your return. The very same
audit guides that IRS auditors follow when
examining tax returns are available for free
on the IRS Web site. Currently, more than
40 guides are available. They cover audit
subjects such as executive compensation,
lawsuit awards and settlements, and
partnerships, as well as dozens of specific
industries such as auto dealerships,
construction, and commercial banking.
Opportunity: By obtaining the guides that
apply to you, you can learn the particular
kinds of filing mistakes that trigger audit
difficulties, which will help make your
return as audit-proof as possible.
To reach the IRS audit guides on the IRS Web
site, click on "Businesses" and then on
"Audit Technique Guides."
5. Forms, publications, and explanations.
The IRS Web site is the greatest single
source of useful information about the tax
rules when preparing your return. You can
obtain information from the IRS Web site on
almost any tax subject of interest to you by
entering the subject in the search box in
the upper right corner. A sampling of what
you'll find...
All the IRS forms and instructions that you
need to file a return, plus explanatory
publications on almost every subject can be
obtained by clicking on "Forms and
Publications."
Answers to the questions that the IRS most
commonly receives are provided in its
extensive listing of "Frequently Asked
Questions." Click on the link with that name
on the IRS home page.
The official texts of the Tax Code, IRS
regulations, tax treaties, and other tax
guidance, such as Revenue Rulings and
Revenue Procedures, are on the IRS Web site
if you wish to examine them. Click on
"Individuals," then on "More Topics."
6. Free tax preparation help. Military
personnel and their families, as well as
other individuals with incomes of $39,000 or
less, can obtain free tax return preparation
help from the IRS-sponsored Volunteer Income
Tax Assistance Program. Seniors age 60 and
older may qualify for free help through the
IRS-sponsored Tax Counseling for the Elderly
Program.
To learn more about these programs and
locate local sources of such help, on the
IRS Web site, click on "Individuals" and
then "Free Tax Preparation For You by
Volunteers."
7. "Can't pay" help. If you prepare your
return only to find that you can't pay what
you owe, it is now possible to obtain short-
term payment extensions and multiyear
installment payment agreements through the
IRS Web site.
You can obtain a streamlined installment
payment agreement if the amount owed does
not exceed $25,000. Full payment must be
completed within five years.
On the IRS Web site, click on "Individuals"
and then on "Online Payment Agreement (OPA)
Application."
8. Refund tracking. After you file your
return, you can track the status of any
refund you claimed through the IRS Web site.
On the IRS home page, click on "Where's My
Refund?"
9. Protecting your rights. If an intractable
problem arises with the IRS bureaucracy
and/or you think that your rights are being
violated, you can learn your rights from the
IRS's Taxpayer Advocate Office (TAO).
Information: For full information about your
rights, and to learn how to contact the TAO
nearest you, click on "Taxpayer Advocate" on
the IRS home page.
10. Local IRS help. If you want help from a
live person in your local IRS office about a
specific problem, you can find the address,
phone number, and other contact information
for it on the IRS Web site. Click on
"Individuals," and then "Contact My Local
Office." Enter your ZIP code in the search
box to find a Taxpayer Assistance Center
within up to 100 miles of your home.
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For those who wanted to have this item
repeated, here it is again:
Best Way to Cancel a
Credit Card
By: Jessica Cecere, Consumer
Credit Counseling Service
Even if the card issuer lets you cancel over
the phone, always get confirmation by E-mail
or in writing. If you get a confirmation
number, keep it with your records. Note the
customer service agent's name and the date
and time. Be sure the confirmation states
that the account was closed at your request.
A month or so later, request a copy of your
credit report to verify that the account is
closed and the reason for closing it is
accurate.
You can get one free credit report annually
from each of the three credit bureaus --
Experian, TransUnion and Equifax -- from
www.annualcreditreport.com Caution: Do not
cancel unused credit cards if you plan to
buy a house or car soon. Canceling a large
amount of unused credit may lower your
credit score.
And this leads into a very real and
continuing threat to your financial well-
being:
THE VERDICT: HANG UP
Don't fall for Jury
Duty Scam
The phone rings, you pick it up, and the
caller identifies himself as an officer of
the court. He says you failed to report
for jury duty and that a warrant is out
for your arrest. You say you never
received a notice. To clear it up, the
caller says he'll need some information
for "verification purposes"-your birth
date, social security number, maybe even a
credit card number.
This is when you should hang up the phone.
It's a scam.
Jury scams have been around for years, but
have seen a resurgence in recent months.
Communities in more than a dozen states
have issued public warnings about cold
calls from people claiming to be court
officials seeking personal information. As
a rule, court officers never ask for
confidential information over the phone;
they generally correspond with prospective
jurors via mail.
The scam's bold simplicity may be what
makes it so effective. Facing the
unexpected threat of arrest, victims are
caught off guard and may be quick to part
with some information to defuse the
situation.
"They get you scared first," says a
special agent in the Minneapolis field
office who has heard the complaints. "They
get people saying, 'Oh my gosh! I'm not a
criminal. What's going on?'" That's when
the scammer dangles a solution: a fine,
payable by credit card that will clear up
the problem.
With enough information, scammers can
assume your identity and empty your bank
accounts.
"It seems like a very simple scam," the
agent adds. The trick is putting people on
the defensive, and then reeling them back
in with the promise of a clean slate.
"It's kind of ingenious. It's social
engineering."
The federal court system issued a warning
on the scam and urged people to call their
local District Court office if they
receive suspicious calls. In September,
the FBI issued a press release about jury
scams and suggested victims also contact
their local FBI field office.
In March, USA.gov, the federal
government’s information website, posted
details about jury scams in their
Frequently Asked Questions area. The site
reported scores of queries on the subject
from website visitors and callers seeking
information.
The jury scam is a simple variation of the
identity-theft ploys that have
proliferated in recent years, as personal
information and good credit have become
thieves' preferred prey, particularly on
the Internet. Scammers might tap your
information to make a purchase on your
credit card, but could just as easily sell
your information to the highest bidder on
the Internet's black market.
Protecting yourself is the key: Never give
out personal information when you receive
an unsolicited phone call.
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UPCOMING 6th REGION MEETING
Please be advised that the meeting is
scheduled for Thursday-Sunday, 24-27 April.
With a great welcome from the Navy, the
venue is on base at Naval Air Station
Lemoore, CA. We'll not only hold the
meeting/symposium there, but will be
billeted there as well, and most of our
activities will be on-station. We have a
block for hotel-type rooms in the Combined
Bachelor Quarters, including three DV
quarters. Single rooms will be $30/night,
mini-suites $40, and the DV quarters $54.
The host chapter, Central Cal in Fresno,
will be managing the BQ reservations; so
don't call NASL on this. We will also be
allowed to sponsor those without military ID
cards, for both lodging and government mess
facilities ("galley mess" in Navy parlance).
Please arrange your affairs to be present at
this meeting during which a new Region
President will be officially announced.
Official invitations will be forwarded to
the membership shortly.
Corporate Members
Since the last Chapter President’s Letter, a
number of Corporate members have been added
to our roster. Most of them have been added
to the chapter’s website
(www/ausa4soldiers.com)
They are
Valley Humane Society
Holiday Inn Concord
El Balazo Mexican
Restaurant in Danville
Renewed Corporate members are:
Pleasanton Plaza Hotel
(formerly the Crowne Plaza Hotel)
(At its re-opening on 19 March
2008, it will become the
Pleasanton Marriot
(with the same wonderful
people serving you)
Crockett Award and
Trophy Service
Costco Danville
Foundation for
Athletes Helping Kids
Uptown Café
Great American
Technologies
Go Mobile Group
ComputerCite
Bay Area Benefits
Insurance Services
Americap Development
Partners
These Corporate members are the lifeblood
for our chapter. There are countless times
when some real (financial) help is needed
for one or more of the many programs we have
for the Soldier and his/her family. Since
our budget is small and our needs are huge,
we almost always ask these Corporate members
for assistance – and they never turn us
down!
Thank you, one and all.
Lucie Marx Titus
Chapter President