Tea Party Group Protests Outside IRS Office in Downers Grove

Dozens rallied along Butterfield Road on Tuesday following revelations that the Internal Revenue Service placed additional scrutiny on the tea party and other conservative groups.

Dozens of tea party activists rallied outside the Internal Revenue Service office in Downers Grove on Tuesday to protest the tax agency's improper targeting of conservative groups. The crowd stood along Butterfield Road, just outside the Esplanade office building, for more than an hour, waving "Don't Tread on Me" flags and chanting anti-IRS slogans. Some activists held signs calling for the IRS to be abolished and likened the agency's actions to Nazi Germany. The Tea Party Patriots organized more than 100 protests at IRS offices across the country Tuesday afternoon. In Illinois, protests were held in Downers Grove, Chicago, Rockford and Springfield. "Our purpose is to bring awareness across the country about the disturbing and illegal …

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When Can I File My 2012 Tax Return?

The IRS has announced a delayed start to the 2012 tax filing season. Here's the date of when you can file, plus some locations in or near Lemont where you can get help on your taxes.

When Can I File My 2012 Tax Return?

The IRS has announced a delayed start to the 2012 tax filing season. Here's the date of when you can file, plus some locations in or near Lemont where you can get help on your taxes.

You'll have to wait if you are used to filing your annual tax return at the earliest possible date. The Internal Revenue Service has revised its opening date for tax season — pushing it back eight days to Jan. 30, 2013. The tax filing deadline is Monday, April 15, 2013. The IRS will begin accepting tax returns on Jan. 30, 2013. Most taxpayers should be able to file on that date, though some revised forms may not be immediately available. You can blame the delay on the federal "fiscal cliff" crisis and the new tax bill Congress passed just after Dec. 31. You can find more information in this Forbes article. Electronic filing season was originally set to start on Jan. 22 this year. As a result of the delay, nobody will get a refund in …

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IRS Offers Tax Help in 140 Characters

Last-minute filers can get tax tips via Twitter.

Now in the final stretch of the 2012 tax filing season, the Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers that they can get last-minute tips by following the IRS on Twitter. The IRS Twitter news feed, @IRSnews, provides the latest federal tax news and information for taxpayers. The focus of the IRS Twitter messages is on easy-to-use information, including tax tips, tax law changes, and important IRS programs such as e-file, getting a filing extension and “Where’s My Refund." The IRS plans a special series of tweets in English and Spanish as the April 17 tax deadline approaches. Anyone with a Twitter account can follow @IRSnews by going to http://twitter.com/IRSnews. Taxpayers can also follow the IRS Twitter news feed using IRS2Go, a free …

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Oak Forest's Blarney Stone Manager Will Serve Time for Trying to Hide Money from IRS

Tom Spellman III, of Lemont, admits he tried to hide more than $1 million; receives 18-month federal prison term.

He's known in Oak Forest as the friendly face behind the bar at Blarney Stone Pub, but beginning in October, Tom Spellman III will be behind bars of a different sort. Spellman, a Lemont resident, was sentenced to 1 1/2 years in prison for his part in hiding more than $1 million in cash from the Internal Revenue Service years ago, by depositing it into the bank in small installments, Sun-Times Media reports. Spellman, 37, said he got mixed up with a bad business partner while living in Virginia. Spellman and Mathieu Reyna, of Virginia, were indicted in July 2009. Spellman is scheduled to report for his prison sentence Oct. 18. The Sun-Times Media report said that according to IRS spokeswoman Kerry Lynn Hannigan, Spellman pleaded guilty in …

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It's Tax Time: Local Resources to Get You through April 18

Tax day's most people's least favorite day of the year. But there are local resources to get you through the day.

We’ve had plenty of time to process the fact that the Illinois General Assembly voted in January to raise the state income tax from 3 to 5 percent. (Take another minute to grumble.) But there is still a little good news for taxpayers. The deadline for filing a tax return this year has been extended by three days to April 18. Since that probably means most people will just take an extra three days to procrastinate, we’ve got some local resources to make doing your taxes as pain free as possible. The Lemont Public Library has a wealth of information to help you through tax season. Starting with the basics, it stocks all the major tax forms, all of which are available free of charge. The library also has a number of guides to tax preparation…

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Five Things You Need to Know Today

Jan. 27: Important Information About Your Income Taxes

Here at Patch, we understand that tax season can be confusing and stressful, so we've compiled five bits of information for Lemont residents in need of assistance.

As Lemont taxpayers begin receiving their W-2 forms, in the coming days, many will turn their thoughts to tax season, the most wonderful time of the year (for accountants, anyway). At Patch, we're all about making your life better and easier. So here are five quick tips to make your income tax preparation as painless as possible: Due to tax law changes enacted by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama in December, the Internal Revenue Service was forced to delay tax filings while processing systems were reconfigured. The delay impacted millions of taypayers, including those filing Schedule A returns for itemized deductions. However, it was announced last week that beginning Feb. 14, the IRS "will start processing both paper and e-…

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