IRS Tax Forms for 2015

Just a reminder to everyone, the tax forms are available to print through the IRS website: https://www.irs.gov/Forms-&-Pubs.

A list of 2015 forms is here: https://apps.irs.gov/app/picklist/list/formsPublications.html

And here's a link to the ADA versions including Braille and large-print: https://www.irs.gov/Forms-&-Pubs/Accessible-Products

And finally, a list of nifty online tools for taxpayers: https://www.irs.gov/uac/Tools 

FYI-the NC State Employees Credit Union participates in the IRS VITA Program. This program is available to EVERYONE who meets the qualifications:

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance

SECU has once again partnered with the IRS to offer free tax preparation to qualified taxpayers through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. This program is available to eligible taxpayers with a household income of $54,000 or less. Preparation of 2015 tax returns will begin in all SECU branches beginning January 20, 2016. If you are eligible to participate, SECU preparers will be able to complete and electronically file both your federal and North Carolina tax returns free of charge!

Eligibility for VITA
The Credit Union can generally prepare your tax return through the VITA program if your household income is less than $54,000 and your return will not include any of the following items*:

• Income from states other than North Carolina (You must also be a full year resident of NC to qualify)
• Most self-employment income requiring a full Schedule C; we can prepare Schedule C-EZ
• Rental income
• Farm income
• Military income**
• Adoption credits
• Foreign earned income
• Non-cash charitable contributions exceeding $500
• Deductions for business use of the home

For more information on how to participate in our VITA tax service, visit our Tax Preparation page.

3D Toolboxes and Annotated History

For those getting excited about our new maker space here's some good protips on maintenance and upkeep: 3D Printer Handyman Toolbox

UK Libraries experimenting with Amazon Lockers to increase foot traffic and boost library income.

Annotating History

And how brilliant scientist Bernard Vonnegut influenced his brother, Kurt.

Fold3 Training Resources

Additional Training resources are available!

(1)    Online Training Webinar January 12^th at 10:00 am EST. Click here to register.  

(2)    Free Fold3 training class from Ancestry Academy.  This resource is great for library staff as well as for patrons.  Users will be asked to set up a free username and password.

https://www.ancestry.com/academy/course/military-vets-fold3

(3)    Fold3 Libguide     http://proquest.libguides.com/Fold3

Pacific Library Partnership Conference Videos: Beer-Brewing and Geo-Caching

The Pacific Library Partnership Conference has several videos with movers and shakers talking about their proposals for the future of public libraries. There are ideas for community partnerships, programming for kids and adults, and some interesting  ways to engage the community.

And international consortium called the Open Library of Humanities (OHL) launched, providing open access to seven academic journals, and hopefully more soon. Currently they have journals on topics such as Irish poetry, Comics Scholarship, and Asian studies. From their site:

                "The Open Library of Humanities (OLH) is a charitable organisation dedicated to publishing open access scholarship with no author-facing article processing charges (APCs). We are funded by an international consortium of libraries who have joined us in our mission to make scholarly publishing fairer, more accessible, and rigorously preserved for the digital future."

 

Science and Health updates

The Merck Manual for medical reference will no longer be updated in print form, but a link to the website will be made available under RPL's online tools under the Health category. There is no registration requirements, nor advertizing, and the site offers infographics, health trackers along with pill identifiers and drug interaction checkers.  The site has a consumer and professional option, but patrons will probably garner more benefits from the consumer site.

ScienceOpen is an open access resource for scientific research articles that now has over 10 million articles. ScienceOpen gives the ability to search for topics, see related articles, and also browse collections including topics such as stem cells, microbial health, and cancer therapy. Registration is requested, but not required to view articles.

From stuff-braries to anonymous surfing

Public libraries have been rethinking their futures as a part of their communities. The redefinition of the public library continues in many different avenues. The NY Times has a great article about various special collections being developed around the country: These Public Libraries Are for Snowshoes and Ukuleles,  Everything from cooking implements, sport and leisure equipment to scientific tools are being checked out to patrons now. Telescopes, sewing machines, and fishing rods are all things people find useful, but use infrequently enough to make them great examples of this movement.

“They realized that the way you best serve your community is to look like them,” ... “For some, that means 3-D printers. For others, it means fishing rods.” Which begs the question of what does RPL's community "look like"? These special lending libraries also bring up a host of additional concerns and questions, such as maintenance, tech support, breakage, and replacement, all above and beyond initial funding.

A different option for public libraries is to embrace and explore the role as a place for the sanctity of free speech and privacy.  New Hampshire has the "First Library to Offer Anonymous Web Browsing" but this was later shut down by Homeland Security. Whether or not this practice becomes commonplace or not, it is an interesting use of available technology. It is yet to be seen whether these trailblazers are creating avenues down which RPL will travel in the future. Much depends on what our community and patrons decide they want, which is ultimately the deciding factor.
 

Financial Literacy Resources

Finances and budgeting are skills that often elude the savviest of folks. Here are some wonderful free  and trustworthy resources for patrons to to navigate the often murky world of money management.

NCUA's Consumer Resources is a list of government sites to inform and educate on such topics as retirement planning, saving for college, mortgages, loan calculators and credit report investigations.

MyMoney.gov is another financial information clearinghouse of government websites and information for consumers.

CreditSmart by Freddie Mac is an online free course in credit building and maintenance. As may of us know, credit is vastly important for people to attain the lives they want. The ability to acquire reliable vehicles, safe and affordable housing, and finance higher education can depend on credit history.

OCC: Financial Literacy Resources The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (The Department of the Treasury) has the most exhaustive list of resources, including such topics as investing, elder financial exploitation, housing, resources in Spanish, and small business financing

And in other news: the ALA's Facebook page was hacked over the weekend. The story proves that librarians have the very best senses of humor. The page has been restored to the rightful hands now.