Thursday, Feb. 24, 2005 | 9:40 a.m.
Dick Benoit
SUN CORRESPONDENT
Troops deployed to combat zones can now apply for tax refunds based on earned income tax credits, as well as additional child tax credits, according to Army Lt. Col. Janet Fenton, executive director of the Armed Forces Tax Council.
The earned income credit primarily involves lower-income filers with children and the additional child tax credit may provide refunds for military families with children younger than age 17, according to an American Forces Press Service (AFPS) release.
Service members who want to apply for the credit refunds are required to fill out and file a federal tax return. Enlisted troops serving in combat areas already have all of their military pay excluded from federal taxes, says Fenton, while officers in combat zones can exclude as much as $6,529 of their monthly pay.
According to AFPS public affairs specialist Gerry Gilmore, troops deployed to noncombat overseas areas have until June 15 to file their income taxes. Troops serving in a combat zone have up to 180 days to file after departing the combat zone.
"Someone who is in Iraq right now would not have to file their 2004 tax return until they leave Iraq," said Fenton, who added that some overseas service members would want to file early because they may be due a refund.
Military-operated tax centers at stateside and overseas locales can provide service members with tax filing assistance, she said. And, married service members deployed to combat and noncombat overseas locales can opt to have spouses file tax returns, she said, provided there is an applicable power of attorney.
For more information on tax or other assistance, active duty, Guard and Reserve service members and dependents can call the toll-free numbers for Military One Source. From the United States call (800) 342-9647. From outside the United States (where available) call (800) 3429-6477. International collect is (484) 530-5747.
West Point Dean's List
Cadet Dora Quezada, Chaparral High School class of 2003 and daughter of Noe and Blanca Quezada of Las Vegas, was named to the Dean's List at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point for the fall 2004 semester.
To qualify for the Dean's List, a cadet must maintain a 3.0 grade point average at the institution, which educates and trains young men and women to assume positions of leadership in the Army.
Quezada's goal is to graduate and be commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army. West Point's mission is to inspire Quezada and her fellow cadets to value duty, honor and country while learning to lead soldiers and acquiring knowledge in a variety of higher education disciplines.
In brief
Petty Officer 2nd Class Jeffrey P. Riesberg, son of Melvin Riesberg of North Las Vegas, recently embarked on a routine scheduled deployment at sites throughout the world in support of national and theater operations in the Western Pacific while attached to Navy Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 40, the Seabees, homebased in Port Hueneme, Calif.
The unit arrived in Okinawa, Japan, in mid-December and has been at several different locations in Japan, including Atsugi, Fuji, Iwakuni and Sasebo, as well as Pohang and Chinhae in South Korea, Diego Garcia and San Clemente Island.
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