Here's what you need to know

 
Dear [firstname], 

At a time when we are balancing so much (especially heading into the second week of Spring!), I understand how hard it can be to keep up with federal, state, and local news. Our office has seen an uptick in questions regarding the IRS, and it’s no surprise why. Thousands of you recently received your stimulus checks, thousands more will be receiving them soon, and, of course, this year’s tax season is upon us. Dealing with the unusual circumstances of the pandemic while navigating tax season can be challenging, which is why I wanted to take this opportunity to share helpful updates and resources.  

But as I’ve done before, I first want to address vaccines. Every day, we are hearing from and speaking with our community about our region’s vaccine distribution. We are turning your concerns into action. Just last week, I led an effort to open additional vaccination sites in our region. Ongoing efforts to improve vaccine rollout in our Commonwealth have shown progress, especially as the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced plans to open vaccines to all Pennsylvanians by April 19. However, I share your frustrations and won't stop advocating until every individual who wants a vaccine is able to get one. We just updated our vaccine FAQs, which you can read here. 

Now, if you don’t have time to read our entire update, please know the federal tax filing deadline was extended to May 17 – more on that later. Once again, we hope you find this message useful and invite you to reach out to our team at (202) 225-4315 if you need help. We are here to serve you. 

In This E-Newsletter You Will Find:

Recent Events — Including the audio recording of our Taxes Telephone Town Hall featuring the Congressional Liaison for the IRS, Kate Hunyady, who joined us to discuss the upcoming tax season and related policies.  

Resources: Helping You Confidently Navigate Tax Season — Including ways to access current IRS tax forms, how to contact the IRS, useful IRS programs to support tax preparation and help individuals file their annual taxes, and the extended deadline to submit your 2020 tax return. 

Breaking it Down: Your Stimulus Checks  — Including information about Economic Impact Payments (stimulus checks) and what to do if you haven’t received yours yet. 

Delivering for Our Community: Constituent Services  — Including a recent story from Carol in Paoli whose IRS issue we helped resolve. 

 .  .  .

Recent Events

Bringing Together Experts to Answer Your Questions 

Throughout the pandemic, our office has remained committed to accessibility. To that end, we hosted a town hall to help our community navigate this tax season. We were lucky to have Kate Hunyady, Congressional Liaison for the IRS, with us to provide expert advice. Listen to our full conversation here, but please note the tax filing deadline was extended after this recording. Remember, all current tax forms and documents can be downloaded and printed at https://www.irs.gov/. To receive IRS forms via the U.S. mail, you can call 1-800-TAX-FORM.

Resources: Helping You Confidently Navigate Tax Season

As a reminder, the federal tax filing deadline was extended to May 17. In fact, both the IRS and the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue announced extensions to their respective deadlines to submit your 2020 taxes. However, the IRS still recommends filing your 2020 taxes as soon as you can. They also recommend that you file online because it’s the most secure and efficient way to process returns. 

Where Can I Find Tax Forms? 

  • All current IRS Tax Forms can be found at https://www.irs.gov/ 

  • To have forms mailed to you, call (800) 829-3676 

  • Make arrangements with your local libraries to pick up or print forms for you 

Are There Free Tax Preparation Resources? 

We understand that filing taxes can be a hassle, especially during a pandemic, so we encourage you to take advantage of these online programs and resources. As always, feel free to reach out to our office with additional questions or concerns. 

Breaking it Down: Your Stimulus Checks

I was proud to help pass our American Rescue Plan, authorizing stimulus checks to aid our economic recovery. To date, the IRS has distributed approximately 130 million payments. If you haven’t received your Economic Impact Payment (EIP) yet, you can track the status using the IRS’s Get My Payment tool online.  

If you are entitled to additional stimulus money, or if you did not receive the first two EIPs, the only way to get those funds is to file your 2020 tax return and claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 tax form 1040 or 1040-SR. For more information about the method of delivery or errors on your payments, please visit the IRS Website. You can also read the IRS' April 1 update here.

As of now, the IRS has not provided guidance on what to do if there was an error in the distribution or amount of the third stimulus payment. We urge constituents to be patient, as additional batches of payments will be sent in the coming weeks as direct deposits and through the mail as paper checks or debit cards. No action is needed by most taxpayers. Updated information on the status of where the IRS is in the process of issuing stimulus payments, including FAQs, can be found here. 

For Social Security recipients: Earlier this week, the IRS in conjunction with the Treasury Department announced that Social Security recipients and other federal beneficiaries who do not usually file a tax return will begin to receive their payments as early as this weekend.

Delivering for Our Community: Constituent Services

Since January 2019, our office has saved or returned constituents over $5,000,000, and we remain committed to serving you during these trying times. My team and I understand the hurdles you all are facing, especially as we surpass the one year mark of this pandemic. Let there be no doubt that we are here to help you resolve any issues with a federal agency. Recently, I was happy to deliver timely service to Carol in Paoli after she wasn’t getting a response from the IRS:
 
If you are having an issue with a federal agency, fill out our form and our team will contact you! We also invite you to read more success stories here. Remember, our website is always a resource for you and your family.
.  .  .

We want to hear from you. Please stay in touch and let us know what you thought of this e-newsletter. As always, we invite you to call one of our offices or message us through our contact form. Feel free to pass this update along to friends of our community so they can keep in touch too.

Respectfully,

WASHINGTON, DC OFFICE
1218 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-4315
M-F 9:00am-6:00pm
WEST CHESTER OFFICE
709 E. Gay Street
Suite 4
West Chester, PA 19380
Phone: (610) 883-5050
M, W, F 9:00am-5:00pm
T, Th 9:00am-7:00pm
READING OFFICE
815 Washington Street
Suite 2-48
Reading, PA 19601
Phone: (610) 295-0815
M, W, F 9:00am-5:00pm
T, Th 9:00am-7:00pm

   
 
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