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January 30,2002
O pinion
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ifjortlanh (Dbeertier
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Charles H. Washington
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should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope.
All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used
in other publications or personal usage without the written consent of the general manager,
unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad. © 1996 THE PORTLAND
u s l is h e k
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Gary Ann Taylor
C a E A
T I y E
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Is There Such a Thing As Tax Returns with a Silver Lining?
A s O regonians receive their
W -2 form s from their em ployers
and tax form s from the state and
federal revenue agencies, m ark
ing the beginning o f tax season,
thousands o f O regon families who
worked last year will be eligible for
federal and state tax credits that
can reduce or elim inate their taxes.
In som e cases the credits m ight
even provide additional funds to
help families m ake ends meet. The
Oregon Center for Public Policy, a
S ilverton-based non-partisan re
search o rg an iz atio n , w ants to
make sure that families who qualify
get the credits and know they can
receive free tax help.
T he Federal governm ent offers
the Earned Income Credit to w ork
ing fam ilies. The E IC ’s value is
based on incom e and fam ily size
and can be worth up to $4,008. The
Federal A dditional C hild Tax
Credit is available to working fami
lies with children. Even if a family
has no tax liability, they can get
m oney back from these credits.
“Even families w hodo not earn
enough m oney to have to file
taxes, ought to,” advises John
Lew is, adm inistrator o f the O r
egon C enter for Public Policy.
“T hese fam ilies m ay still qualify
for these federal credits. That
could m ean significant additional
incom e for the fam ily.”
Oregon provides working fami
lies with tw o credits, a state Earned
Incom e C redit equal to 5 percent
o f the federal E IC , and the W ork
ing Fam ily C hild C are Credit,
w orth up to 40 percent o f out-of-
pocket child care expenses.
W hile neither o f the O regon
credits will give back more money
While neither o f the Oregon
credits will give back more money
than the fam ily’s state income tax
liability, the families may still get
money back from the state if taxes
were withheld by their employer
over the course o f last year.
than the fam ily ’ s state incom e tax
liability, the fam ilies m ay still get
m oney back from the state if taxes
were w ithheld by their em ployer
o ver the course o f last year.
Free help preparing state and
W e ig h t L o s s P r o m o tio n s T h in
federal tax returns is available from
A A R P and 1RS sponsored ‘T a x -
A ide” sites throughout Oregon.
T rained volunteers are available
to an sw e r q u estio n s, h elp do
taxes, and in som e locations even
file the taxes electronically (“e-
file”).
“Low -incom e fam ilies do not
need to pay som eone to do their
taxes,” said Lew is. “All they need
to d o is c a ll 1-888-A A R PN O W or
1-888-227-7669 and find the local
T ax A ide site to get free assis
tan ce.”
“T hese credits all target then-
help to low -incom e fam ilies w ho
w ork,” said Lewis. “Even though
a fam ily is w orking, it isn ’t easy to
m ake ends m eet if y o u ’re m aking
seven o r eight dollars an hour.
T he credits are a w ay o f providing
relief to those w ho need it the
m ost.”
T he C en ter’s outreach m ateri
als are also helpful for em ployers
and organizations w ho have co n
tact with O reg o n ’s low incom e
workforce.
“Em ployers should be telling
their em ployees about these cred
its. O rganizations w ho w ork with
low -incom e fam ilies should be
inform ing their clients about these
credits. Every fam ily w ho quali
fies should be applying for these
credits,” said Lew is. “N o h ard
w o rk in g , lo w -in c o m e fam ily
should m iss out on this opportu
nity.”
F or m ore inform ation or to re
quest these free outreach tools,
c o n ta c t
John
L e w is
at
jlewis @ocpp.org,503-873-1201, or
on the web: w ww .ocpp.org/tc.
For questions about federal
taxes o r to find the location o f a
T ax-A ide site contact the IRS at 1 -
800-829-1040. For questions about
state taxes contact the O regon
D epartm ent o f Re venue at 1-800-
3564222.
Now, a Credit Union for You
Y o u r W a lle t, N o t Y o u r F ig u r e
Fads com e and go, but w hen it
com es to diets, the negative health
effects can be perm anent.
W e all know individuals who
go on diets even w hen they d o n ’t
need to lose weight. A ccording to
health experts, fad diets are dan
gerous when they keep you from
getting the calories and nutrients
you need to function at optim al
levels.
T he popularity o f m ost fad d i
ets is usually short-lived, and so
is the w eight loss associated with
the diet. If you stay on a restrictive
diet over a long period o f tim e, you
may deprive your body o f neces
sary vitam ins and nutrients. Teens
are especially vulnerable to fad
diets because they have bodies
that experience dram atic changes
and frequent grow th spurts.
Som e dieters believe pills and
capsules that prom ise to ‘bum ,
block, flush,’ or otherw ise elim i
nate fat from their system will help
them toquickly becom e slim m er.
H ow ever, m edical science has yet
to com e up w ith a healthy m agic
pill, potion o r device that g uaran
tees im m ediate w eight loss.
Some pills m ay control your
appetite, but they often have seri
ous side effects. D epending on the
ingredients, diet pills can cause
nervousness, vomiting or insom
nia, and they can be addictive.
The fact is, the only w ay to lose
w eight w hile m aintaining overall
health is to consistently eat few er
calories than your body needs
and uses. T his can be done by
eating w ell balanced m eals, doing
m ore exercise, o r both.
A ccording to the B etter B usi
ness Bureau, m isleading w eight
loss advertisem ents are on the
rise. M any w eight loss prom o-
tions prom ise the loss o f several
pounds in a w eek o r overnight,
w ithout having to restrict favorite
foods or exercise regularly.
Since many w eight loss prom o
tions only thin your wallet, not
your figure, the BBB advises con
s u m e rs to c h e c k o u t th e
com pany’s record with the BBB;
question vaguely w orded testi
m onials and claim s prom ising im
m ediate, effortless and/or guaran
teed w eight loss; rem em ber that
buzzw ords like ‘breakthrough,
secret, exclusive, o r m iraculous,’
are only descriptive, not scientific
w ords and that they often appear
in ads selling fraudulent diet prod
ucts; and say no to high pressure
sales tactics and one-tim e-only
offers.
C onsum ers ca n co n tac t the
BBB ConsumerHotline a t503-226-
3981 for more inform ation.
• Free Checking Accounts
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• Term Investment Accounts
• Individual Retirement Accounts
• Holiday-Tax Club Accounts
• Youth Club Accounts
• Low cost loans:
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- Auto and Truck Loans
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- Home loans, firsts and seconds
- Home Equity Lines o f Credit
• A ll deposits insured by an agency o f the
Federal Government
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Serving all who live, work, worship or attend school
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SAFEWAY
FOOD & DRUG
Attention
SENIORS
N IW FOR
SENIORS ONLY...
S a fe w a y S e n io r
S h u ttle S e rv ice !
Introducing a gn at new service for
our neighborhood senior citizens
FREE grocery shopping "shuttle
j service" to your nearby Ainsworth
/ A MLK Blvd Safeway Food & Drug
I and Renaissance Market TWICE a
f Month! O n or around the 3rd and
15th of each month This Service is
FREE to seniors age 60 and over
nrowSriMn G ntdriddin and rrtonts
Pork Shoulder
Country Style Ribs
SAVE up to $1.70 lb.
I >7 FOOD A DRUG
UÍ&AÍtí
*
SAVE up to $1.01 lb.
Safeway Peeled
Baby Carrots
Limit 1.
SAVE up to $4.11
Available at
Safeway:
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T T
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wio «•»
H s immnwl
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14b. Bag.
<
99
SAVE up to 70c aa.
3
ea
Safeway Club Price
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tha towar pnrad aam « twn feaa
C200J Safeway Saom m,
/
lb
Safeway Club Price
34.5 to 39-oz. Selected varieties.
26-oz. Decaffeinated.
(Excludes Whole Bean)
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ad »» m W * a your loca Safeway worn
o «an » tfeafe u '« aira n ti or M M o n Safe« ai maa quanoon only
r aarm may br M fe d and «uhan to «Mdatafey
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Safeway Club Price
From Chile.
Folgers Coffee
BREHCMB
Ö B B fl Of CQMKRCt
O il
fa r M ot e
Infor m atron Coll
503 572 0812
Visit Safeways
Web site at
www.safeway.com
lb
Bone-in. Valu Pack of 4-lbs.
or more. Marinate and broil.
L O O K F O R O U R S P tU A L
~RA2 TRAN'S FOKTATK3P4' TROLL f Y 5tR V tC B
s c H to u ia n r tK a t y o u r m l k r l v d
iA F T W A Y en d R B N A I55A N C 6 M A R K S T FO R
C O N F L K T t DKTAILS'
Red and
Green Grapes
Safeway Club Price
N o w t h e s a v in g s a r e in t h e C a rd !
I
ALI. LIMITÒ ARE PER
1101 SEHOI.I) PER DAY!