If Shakespeare was alive today he would probably change the wording in act one, scene two of his great play, "Julius Caesar", from "Beware the Ides of March" to "Beware the Ides of April"! Local newscasters, for whom a little knowledge is always a dangerous thing, inevitably refer to the tax deadline as the Ides of April. However, anyone with a third grade education (if he or she went to school in the 40's) can tell you right off that in April the Ides fall on the 13th and not the 15th. Be that as it may, this is usually a tense time of the year for most of us.

One way to ease the passage of this nail biting time is to make use of the Torrance Tax Helpers group (organized through "AARP TaxAide"), currently housed in the basement of the Torrance City Hall, where they have been located for the past three years. Headed up by RSVP member, Whit Walter, this group of volunteers starts work at the beginning of February and is hard at it right up until the April 15th deadline.

RSVP member Whit Walter has been volunteering in this capacity since 1985 and says that they have been in operation for the past twenty years.

From a pool of around forty volunteers, different teams are used each day of the week. Although the activity starts at the beginning of February and continues for the next two and a half months, Whit told me that there tends to be a lot of activity during the first three weeks of February for those people who want to be done with it (and are presumably due to get a refund). Although the middle of March is typically a little slower, the pace starts to pick up as April 15th approaches. However, most of these latter returns tend to be delayed because they are a bit more complicated.

A computer program called "TaxWise" is used and the returns are filed electronically. This is a program that is supplied by AARP, and the IRS contracts with this organization, using money allocated via the Older Americans Act. Additional resources are supplied by AARP, who also distribute training materials and any necessary forms. Whit said that anyone who wants to volunteer as a tax preparer is welcome to contact him and will be given a four day training program before they start.

People wanting their taxes prepared this way can come to the room, where they will be asked to sign in while they wait outside to be called. Although the target audience covers the elderly with moderate income, they will take anyone who comes in. Younger people will also be taken care of although they may have to wait until the older patrons have been seen to. However, if your return includes rental property or limited partnerships, Whit pointed out that they do not cover these eventualities and recommend that you get your paperwork seen to by a professional tax preparer.

Click HERE to see a list of the various TaxAide locations that are available in this area, as well as driving directions.