Post Offices Will Accept Tax Forms Up to Deadline

It was the main Santa Ana branch of the U.S. Postal Service that first launched late-night service on April 15 to accommodate desperate tax filers. That was 20 years ago, and now just about every region offers the special service.

“There are probably postal workers across the nation saying ‘Santa Ana’ under their breath because they have to work late,” said Christine Dugas, a communications specialist for the postal service in Orange County.

This year, 10 post offices in the county will offer some combination of late window service and curbside collection on Wednesday, the busiest day of the year for mail workers.

In addition, 14 contract stations will remain open until midnight on tax day to sell stamps and collect tax returns for postmarks. A fifteenth, in The City Shopping Center in Orange, will remain open only until 9 p.m.

“We convinced them to stay open this year . . . to make it even easier for customers to file their taxes,” Dugas said.

While they plan for the worst, it is hard to tell what the crush of postal patrons will be come Wednesday night between 7 and 10 p.m., traditionally the peak period for procrastinators.

“But we always get people right up to midnight sitting in line and filling out their forms as they wait,” Dugas said.

Some people even ask advice of postal workers waiting to collect their returns.

“We do try to do everything we can to make filing their taxes easier,” Dugas said. “But we’re not the IRS and we can’t give out tax advice.”