1. Regional Comments Jerry Lopatin, Pacific Regional Coordinator
Agenda
Thank you’s
The Good
The Other
Site Issues seen last season – Jerry
Some persistent challenges
The New
Pacific Regional Policies
Regional Goals

2. Thank You! Last Year was Difficult … I apologize … You Came Through …
But sometimes with Tremendous Personal Cost
Special Callout to …

3. The Good …
Almost As Many Returns as Last Year

4. 2017 Filing Season Results – Tax-Aide
Achieved 94.25% Accuracy Rate
Prepared Over 1.5 Million Federal Returns
Prepared Over 1.2 Million State Returns
Achieved 99% Electronic Filing Rate
Returned Over $1.3 Billion In Federal Refunds
Refund Returns Exceeded 1.2 Million Returns
Served Over 290,000 Veterans
Increased Direct Deposit Rate To 70%

5. 2017 Filing Season Results – Tax-Aide
Quality Return Review Results – Tax-Aide
QSS Return Reviews
94.25% Accuracy Rate
174 Return Reviews Completed
164 Correct Returns Completed
10 Incorrect Returns Completed
7 Sites With Incorrect Returns
Quality Site Requirement Adherence
93.90% Accuracy Rate
59 Site Reviews Completed

6. Supplemental Intake Sheet Highlights
Piloted to answer two questions:
would form be used?
who are we actually serving from a diversity perspective?
All States used the Intake Sheet to varying degrees.
Diversity Sites (as expected) had higher percentages of multicultural groups.
Difficult to know if any anomalies in results due to TaxSlayer or Software Setup issues (or other reasons)

7. Supplemental Intake Sheet Summary Stats
All Sites – 24% Total Multicultural
82% White
7% Hispanic
10% African-American / Black
2% Asian
< 1% Am Indian/Alaska Native
< 1% Hawaii / Pacific Islander
3% Other

8. Taxpayer Satisfaction Survey
2017 Taxpayer Satisfaction Survey Results
(note TSS uses random sample of 3,000 respondents)
82% White
4% Hispanic
7% Black / African-American
2% Asian
1% Am Indian/Alaska Native
2% Other

10. Site Issues Seen TY 2016 - Jerry
Almost Always
Little to absolutely no use of C
Not asking about additional income
Not looking for Scope issues before starting return
Frequently
Not empathetically engaging with Taxpayer
Long waits for service
Not going over return with Taxpayer
Not emphasizing return is Taxpayer responsibility
Not looking at prior year return for possible missing items
Occasionally
Taxpayer not present during QR
Demanding original Social security card
No wrap up – emphasizing action  

12. Brand New – and Tentative
Multi-Factor Authentication
Lots to come on this
Re-Authentication every 7-30 days (currently)
Default is 7 days – but each site can change during site setup.
13615 Wording
New wording says
By signing this form, I declare that I have completed Volunteer Standards of Conduct Certification and have read, understand, and will comply with the volunteer standards of conduct. I also certify that I am a U.S. citizen, a legal resident, or otherwise reside in the U.S. legally.
Awaiting clarification …
Global Carryover Requirement to TY 2018
TY 2017 has Global Carryover everywhere in Tax-Aide
Carryover allowed to same Tax-Aide Site in 2018
Carryover to another Tax Aide site in 2018 will require signed authorization

13. Some Persistent Difficult Issues
What should we do about high income taxpayers?  And what is “high income”
Possible letter to high income taxpayers
What should we do about shut-ins? 
How do we ensure volunteer safety? 
And what impact does it have on serving others?
Walk-ins are more efficient than appointments, but also force elderly (and other) taxpayers to wait a long time. 
Quality vs Quantity of people served
Should we mainly go to an appointment system? 
And is it fair to open appointments the first day of the tax season, so they can be all taken by the first week?

14. Pacific Regional Policies TY 2017
Regional (R10) Decisions
Intake Forms (including Supplemental) Will Be Used!
No Taxpayers with Foreign accounts over $10k – ASK!
Amendments
Only for Missed Income < $200, Refund >$25
Complete Tax return must go with any 8879 that leaves site
May say “DRAFT”
OK to “discuss” / give letter to Taxpayers with income over $100K
Remember, Income > $250k (MFJ) is 99.9% likely Out of Scope (NIIT)
No California Part-Year or Non-Resident Returns
File / Printer Sharing – vs wireless printing – OK
Windows 10 – try to accelerate upgrade this year

15. Possible Letter to High Income Taxpayers
Dear Taxpayer,
We’re happy that you have had the opportunity today to have your taxes prepared by the volunteers of AARP Tax-Aide.
As you probably know, Tax-Aide’s mission is to provide high quality free income tax preparation to low- and moderate-income taxpayers, with special attention to those age 60 and older. The average income of those we serve in this area is approximately $xx,xxx.
While we don’t have an income cap, there are many low income seniors in this area that we must turn away because we simply do not have enough volunteers to meet the demand. We have noticed that your income is substantially above our average, and it is likely that you have the resources to afford a paid preparer. While we will welcome you back next year, we do ask that you consider the needs of those that cannot afford paid preparation and, if your income remains at this level, to consider using a paid preparer instead so that space can be freed up to accommodate others.
Thank you

16. Pacific Regional Goals
Build Confidence in TaxSlayer (Survey)
Leader succession
Volunteer retention / satisfaction (Survey)
Build bridges with VITA and local agencies
Build recruiting pipeline with National organizations and IRS
Weekend and evening sites