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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 5, 2020)
NEWS A14 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM Plastics WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2020 BTW Continued from Page A1 Saturday, the founda- tion hosted its annual crab- feed and auction fundraiser, which is where nearly 100% of its funding comes from. “I’m so impressed with generosity of Hermiston,” George Clough, co-presi- dent of the foundation board, said. “We did well.” Clough said that offi cial fi gures will be tallied at the next board meeting, but that the Hermiston Community Center where the fundraiser took place was packed. “Our goals are to basi- cally supplement the offer- ings at the school district. Things that don’t fi t into the mainstream budget,” he Taxes Continued from Page A1 Barnett, co-founder and shareholder of Hermiston’s Barnett & Moro. “The more and better you do it, the more likely you are to be able to make your deductions and receive a bigger refund, or be able to defend yourself if you’re audited.” Maintaining thorough records has aided the 40 or so businesses and partner- ships that Pendleton’s RBH Group and Lonnie Read have helped in getting their taxes fi led this week. Read, who is a partner with the group, said many of the cli- ents they’ve seen so far already had everything pre- pared and only had to wait for their fi nancial num- bers from December to be fi nalized. Read said too many peo- ple often rush their taxes and make a mistake or can for- get to include something entirely, which then means they have to fi le an amended return later in the year and often have complications getting their return. Read added that the prev- Continued from Page A1 Staff photo by Jessica Pollard Hermiston High School students can recycle plastic materials leftover from 3D printing assignments with the help of a Hermiston Education Foundation grant, which allowed for the purchase of a fi lament grinder and extruder. added. This coming year, the Hermiston Education Foun- dation will begin offering scholarships to faculty to aid with certifi cation updates. alence of identity theft and scammers today means it’s also safer to fi le your taxes early. “The longer you wait to fi le, the more opportunity someone who’s stolen your identity has to fi le before you,” he said. Many accountants in Umatilla County are busy in the fi rst weeks of tax sea- son because they primarily serve farm and agricultural clients, who have an expe- dited deadline of March 1 if they don’t want to make estimated tax payments throughout the year. The county’s tax profes- sionals recommend reaching out ahead of time to sched- ule an appointment if you have any questions or have a more complex fi ling circum- stance. Barnett added that a complex marital or child sit- uation can also cause confu- sion when fi ling. “It shouldn’t be this dif- fi cult,” Barnett said of fi l- ing taxes. “But I swear since I’ve been helping peo- ple with them, the law has grown from about 4 inches thick to 4 feet thick.” Last year was the fi rst tax season following major fed- eral tax reforms passed by Congress in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which Neis- tadt said “affected almost everything we did for tax fi l- ing season.” Neistadt said the IRS has provided clarifi cations and additional details on certain aspects of the new laws, but for the most part individu- als have little to worry about when it comes to changes this year. “As a general rule, things this year have stayed rel- atively the same,” Barnett said. But there’s still room to better understand how to navigate the law. “One misconception I’ve seen a lot of is that because the federal gov- ernment raised the standard deduction, people are say- ing, ‘Why am I even both- ering looking at my itemiza- tions?’” Read said. “Even though the federal govern- ment did, the state of Ore- gon didn’t.” The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act raised the standard fed- eral deduction for single fi l- ers from $6,350 in 2017 to now $12,200 this year, along with raising it from $12,700 for spouses fi ling jointly in 2017 to $24,400 this year. release. She will work out of the Hermiston offi ce at 945 SE Fourth St., Suite B. Pierson has a bachelor’s degree in animal science and experience in agricul- tural sales and marketing. She is an member of the Boardman City Coun- cil, Boardman Kiwanis Club and Oregon Cat- tlewomen. She said she became a real estate agent to provide new opportuni- ties for her family. “It’s an exciting time to be here,” she said in a state- ment. “Our communities are progressing and thriv- ing, while honoring tradi- Taxpayers must opt for the standard deduction or provide records for itemized deductions, and last year the number of people opting to itemize their deductions dropped from 30% in 2018 to just 10%, according to the IRS. Though most individu- als will again benefi t more by taking the raised standard deduction, tax preparers say it can still pay to tally them in Oregon. Neistadt said those who make large charitable contri- butions and those with high property taxes should con- sider itemizing their deduc- tions, and Read said those who incurred any major medical expenses in the last year should be aware of the tax breaks extended by the federal government this season. On Wednesday, the Ore- gon Department of Revenue announced the extension of tax breaks for medical and dental expenses that exceed 7.5% of an individual’s yearly gross income. The big change busi- nesses in Oregon have on their mind is the Corporate Activity Tax, which was passed by the Oregon Legis- tions and the people before us. We’re really blessed with people who truly care.” For more information contact Pierson at 541-561- 0330 or lesliepierson@ windermere.com. • • • This year marks the 75th anniversary of the found- ing of Bank of Eastern Oregon. The bank will be cele- brating with open houses throughout the year at each of its 20 branches, starting in February. The Arlington and Con- don branches will go fi rst with celebrations held Feb. 10-14. The bank was fi rst founded in 1945 in Gilliam County by a group of farm- ers and ranchers who saw a need for a bank in Eastern lature in 2019. The tax requires all busi- nesses in the state that gen- erate $750,000 in yearly revenue to register with the Oregon Department of Rev- enue, and to then pay a tax of 0.57% on all revenue exceeding $1 million. Barnett said nearly every business generates more than $1 million in reve- nue and the only businesses exempt from the tax are gro- cery stores and fuel distribu- tors. The tax will raise fund- ing for education in the state and is projected to raise $2.8 billion from 2021 to 2023. Read said businesses are already aware of the com- ing tax and that most already seek professional help for fi ling their taxes. But what about peo- ple who can’t afford to hire an accountant or pay for another tax preparation service? Each year, the Ameri- can Association of Retired Persons (AARP) hosts a free tax preparation service called Tax-Aide. The ser- vice is staffed completely by volunteers, all trained by the IRS, and is open to peo- ple of all ages and incomes. No AARP membership is Oregon. For more information, and to see a historical video about the bank, visit www. beobank.com. • • • The menu for Thursday at the Harkenrider Senior Activity Center is baked chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, salad and des- sert. Friday is sloppy Joes, potato chips, fruit and des- sert. Monday is pork sand- wich, pea salad, fruit and dessert. Tuesday is spa- ghetti, garlic bread, green salad and dessert. Next Wednesday is potato soup, garlic bread, salad and dessert. — You can submit items for our weekly By The Way column by emailing your tips to editor@hermiston- herald.com. required. “It’s designed for low or moderate income peo- ple who have fairly sim- ple tax return needs,” said Joyce DeMonnin, commu- nications director for AARP Oregon. Last year, volunteers helped Oregonians fi le 45,000 federal tax returns, DeMonnin said, which yielded $48 million in refunds. Starting Feb. 3, AARP Oregon will hold walk-in tax prep services in Herm- iston at the library on Tues- days and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Board- man will have services avail- able at the senior center on Wednesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. When it comes to tax season, regardless of how you’re fi ling your return in 2020, just don’t ignore it. “I think it’s important that people are very aware of their fi nancial situation,” Neistadt said. “Not just as it relates to taxes but per- sonally as well. I think that the more you pay atten- tion to what’s going on, the less likely you are to have a major fi nancial crisis down the road.” Good Shepherd Health Care System is pleased to introduce oncology services tailored to the needs of individual patients within our local area. Stephen Iacoboni, M.D., is an oncology specialist with the distinction of being the first board certified oncologist in the region. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the community with 40 years of experience in the treatment of various facets and types of cancer and blood disorders. “ Good Shepherd Health Care Systems offers the opportunity to enact a vision of oncology that will truly be beneficial to our community. ” Meet Our New Oncologist Stephen Iacoboni, MD Welcoming New Patients GOOD SHEPHERD MEDICAL GROUP Oncology & Hematology 541.667.3680 Good Shepherd Medical Center Treatment Center, Unit C 610 NW 11th St. Hermiston, OR. 97838
