When Can I File My 2012 Tax Return?

The IRS has announced a delayed start to the 2012 tax filing season. Here's the date of when you can file, plus some locations in Orland Park to get help on your taxes.

You'll have to wait if you are used to filing your annual tax return at the earliest possible date. The Internal Revenue Service has revised its opening date for tax season — pushing it back eight days to January 30, 2013. The tax filing deadline is Monday, April 15, 2013. The IRS will begin accepting tax returns on Jan. 30, 2013. Most taxpayers should be able to file on that date,  though some revised forms may not be immediately available. You can blame the delay on the federal "fiscal cliff" crisis and the new tax bill Congress passed just after Dec. 31. You can find more information in this Forbes article. Electronic filing season was originally set to start on Jan. 22 this year. As a result of the delay, nobody will get a refund in …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)

Orland Park Trustees Approve $19.2 Million Tax Levy for 2013 and More (Live Blog Transcript)

Trustees also discussed lowering rates for non-residents at the Sportsplex. Join us at 6 p.m. Read our transcript from the meeting.

The Orland Park Village Board will be voting on the tax levy for 2013 during the Monday night meeting. The total tax levy will be for $19,287,256, according to village documents. The operating levy, which accounts for taxes other than the Orland Park Public Library   A public hearing will be held for the 2013 budget at 6:45 p.m. The village's parks and recreation, finance and technology committees will meet before the full board at 6 p.m. Look at the media packets for each of the committee meetings, as well as the village board meeting, for more information. Orland Park Patch’s live blog through Cover It Live will provide minute-by-minute updates from the meeting on this page starting at 6 p.m. Look in the Cover It Live window above, and …

• Documents (4)

D135 to Request 3 Percent Higher Tax Levy (Live Blog Transcript)

Orland School District 135 will ask for a slightly higher figure than in 2011 to offset costs built into to the latest teacher contract, which is tied to a figure that caps what school districts can request in tax money. Read our meeting transcript.

Update, 11:35 p.m., Monday, Nov. 5, 2012 Orland School District 135 will be asking for more money from property owners for the next fiscal year, in order to cover costs associated with the latest teachers' contract. The district will be asking for a three percent higher tax levy, which equates to about $1.9 million. The levy is equal to the Consumer Price Index, which in turn is the cap of how much school districts can additionally request in a tax levy per year.  The most recent teachers' contract for D135 has salary increases tied to CPI, which is the main need for the levy, said D135 Asst. Supr. for Business Services John Reiniche, during Monday night's Committee of the Whole meeting. "The whole design of the contract was how do we …

•  2 Comments
• Photos (1)
• Documents (2)

Property Tax Rebate Applications Start Oct. 29

Orland Park property owners will have until Dec. 14 to submit the applications, which can be sent in online, through mail or in person at the village hall.

Orland Park village staff detailed plans Monday night to distribute a $2.5 million property tax rebate to property owners, with the applications starting at the end of October. Starting 8 a.m. on Oct. 29, Orland Park property owners will be able to either submit the application online through www.optaxrebate.com, print the application out and either mail it or submit in person, or visit Frederick T. Owens Village Hall during regular hours and get assistance from staff in submitting the forms. The link www.optaxrebate.com will not go live until 8 a.m. Oct. 29. Property owners will need copies of a property tax bill, their driver’s license and a utility bill to finish the application. The deadline for submitting the application is Dec. 14, …

•  4 Comments
• Photos (1)

Video: Noise, Confusion Leads Orland Park to Hold Public Hearing on Apartments

Several residents attended Monday night’s open house were expecting a public forum.

Whether for or against the 205-unit luxury apartment complex likely to be built within the Main Street Triangle area, many agreed that Monday night’s open house was not an effective way to share thoughts. Orland Park village staff and trustees, as well as Mayor Dan McLaughlin and developer David Flaherty, set up an expo-style open house about the Ninety 7 Fifty project at the Orland Park Civic Center. While the idea was for residents to ask questions individually, little could be heard amidst a growing volume of arguments ensuing early on into the meet. For most of the night McLaughlin was surrounded by irate residents. But one request was heard. McLaughlin agreed to hold a public hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 6, the date that the village …

•  5 Comments
• Videos (1)

Candidates Question Candidates During Village Board Forum

During Orland Township's candidate forum for Orland Park Village Board, the hopefuls got to grill each other on the issues.

Orland Township's candidates forum for the people vying for Orland Park Village Board had a slight twist on the usual format. Candidates were open to put each other to task on several issues, by asking each other specific questions.

• Videos (3)

Issue Rundown: Orland Park Village Board Candidates on Planning Budgets

Candidates campaigning for a seat on the Orland Park Village board shared their views on how to fill a possible budget gap.

The following answers are taken from issue-focused questionnaires, where candidates for Orland Park Village Board were given the option to reply in writing, sit down for an in-person interview or participate in a phone interview. Answers are posted in the order questionnaires were returned or interviews were held. Trustees and staff plugged a $1.8 million budget gap this fall by increasing certain fees and fines, including vehicle stickers, without cutting staff. Is there anything you would have done differently? John Brudnak (phone interview) You have to look at cutting staff. At the school board we cut staff, now we’re looking at the administrative level. At my company, everybody took a hit, from top management to the lowest guy in the …

• Photos (1)

2011 Election Issues: Tom Cunningham, Orland Park Village Board Candidate

As a follow-up to our initial and more-biographical questionnaire, we asked candidates to answer issue-specific questions.

Nine candidates are campaigning for three open seats on Orland Park’s board of trustees. Candidate Tom Cunningham offered his thoughts on eminent domain with regard to the Main Street Triangle, TIFs and running the village as a business. Does the current board engage in enough debate and discussion before voting? No, the current board is a rubber stamp for the mayor. The agenda is not specific. Too many items are on the consent item that should be separate to see how each individual votes on matters. You had an opportunity in the last questionnaire to name the biggest problem facing Orland Park. Are there any others? How do you plan to solve them? One of the biggest problems facing our village is the sales tax. The tax needs to be reduced …

• Photos (1)

2011 Election: Gregory H. Okon, Orland School District 135 Board Candidate

As a follow-up to our initial and more-biographical questionnaire, we asked candidates to answer issue-specific questions.

Four candidates are competing for three seats in this year's Orland School District 135 Board of Education race. In Patch's issue-focused questionnaire, incumbent Gregory H. Okon talked creating teacher contracts, saving money with in-house repairs and why he is against consolidation. In your opinion, what is the greatest challenge the district faces, and how do you propose to overcome it? At the forum, I made reference to the fact that we have to get a collective bargaining contract through for the teachers. It’s a challenge on both sides to make it fair and equitable. Let’s face it, the money we saw in the past is leaving all the time. We want to make sure we treat the teachers as equitability as we can. We can’t give away store because …

• Photos (1)

Rear View

In The Rear View: Orland Park Board Hopefuls Sound Off and Surviving the Japan Tsunami

We look back at a week where Orland Park Village Board candidates faced off, an Orland Hills man described his experience in Japan during the earthquake and tsunami and moms contemplated on bullying.

U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R) and U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert (R-Hinsdale) visited Orland Park for a town hall meeting at Carl Sandburg High School, where they made their cases to fix the rising national debt. Kirk also pointed out some unsettling aspects of Illinois’ finances compared to other states and countries, before area resident either praised or chided the politicians. Orland Park doesn’t want the state to meddle with their Tax Increment Finance district managing. The Illinois General Assembly is contemplating legislation that would give them more control over TIFs in individual towns, cities and villages, and Orland Park wants no part of it. This week our Moms Council offered thoughts on approaching children about bullying, whether they are…

• Photos (1)