• Ask the taxgirl: Girl Scout cookies – In the case of the Girl Scouts, Girl Scouts of the USA is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. The “Cookies from Home” program allows you to pay for the cost of a box of cookies and instead of taking the cookies home and eating them …

Speaking of charitable donations, don’t forget that you must have receipts for all donations in order to deduct them.  This is trickier for non-cash donations, such as clothing given to Goodwill or the Council of the Blind.  Here’s a valuation-guide you can use to help you assign values to your non-cash donations.

• Don’t Mess With Taxes: Fun tax season ahead for free filers – Software companies a step ahead: My first thought upon hearing of this option is that it could work nicely for folks who aren’t eligible for Free File, but who buy their own tax software. Some of them, including me, don’t e-file because .

It’s important to note that the free efile program only provides the forms for taxpayers, it does not calculate your taxes like a tax software program does, so you still have to know how to complete the forms.  But for taxpayers who have simple returns, this could be very helpful.

• Delinquent Taxpayers Get Sympathy from an Unexpected Source – Settling tax debts is not necessarily high on the list of taxpayers struggling to keep their homes and who may have lost their jobs. Delinquent taxpayers are, however, getting a little bit of sympathy… from the IRS. …

As taxgirl says, I’m not sure how much help this will be for taxpayers who are fighting to keep their homes but it’s nice to see a friendlier IRS in this tough economy.

Related Posts:

• W-2s and 1099s Due Monday!
• Final Tax Estimate for 2008 Approaching Quickly
• Recovery Rebate Credit for 2008