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Tax prep too expensive

Shawn Vestal’s March 1 report on Emily Languell and her tax refund fees from H&R Block really missed the boat. While I agree paying $25 to use a prepaid debit card is unreasonable, charging Languell $315 for two years of tax returns is a bigger crime.

She is a 24-year-old single mother that works at McDonald’s. Unless she had multiple stacks of investment data and schedules to file, her tax preparation should have taken someone about 20 minutes of plugging numbers into a computer program. Most likely, the someone that helped her was a Joe Blow off the street that had taken a two- to six-week class on how to plug numbers into a computer. Joe Blow was very interested in H&R Block’s revenue stream, and not at all interested in Languell’s best interests.

My husband is a certified public accountant who works out of his home. I urge everyone to talk to family and friends. If you need help with accounting work, find someone that you can trust.

Julie Tveit

Spokane Valley

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