A Letter to the U.S. Dept of Education

I was having such a nice day, too.  After a very good run with Sapta this morning, I was feeling very relaxed; ready to take on the day.  Like every other day, one of my first tasks is catching up on emails received over night.  I got a real gem from the Department of Education this morning.  I've edited some parts out because they're just plain boring, but here is the message:

Dear Parent of CARL,

Recently your information was provided in the parental section of your student's 2012-2013 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).  The information you provided indicated that you were going to file your taxes and were providing estimated 2011 tax information.  Now that the federal tax filing deadline has passed and you have probably filed your 2011 tax returns, it is time for you to update your student's FAFSA.

Updated information can be provided once your student accesses their FAFSA at www.fafsa.gov.  You should change your answer on the FAFSA (question 79) to reflect that you have "already completed" your tax return.  Once you've made this change, you will need to update the information you initially reported on the FAFSA to reflect the actual information from the 2011 tax return you filed. ...

... you are required to update the income information so that it reflects the information on the 2011 tax return you filed.  The tax-related questions you should review on your student's FAFSA include adjusted gross income, income tax paid, number of exemptions, and income earned from work.  You should also ensure that your FAFSA correctly identifies the type of tax return that was filed (IRS 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ, foreign tax return, etc.) and that you have entered the correct amounts for Additional Financial Information (questions 91a-f) and Other Untaxed Income (questions 92a-i).

It is important that you make the necessary changes to the tax information so that your student's FAFSA includes the same information that was included on your tax return.  However, when making corrections based on your completed federal tax returns, do not update other information that was correct at the time you filed your FAFSA.  For example, do not change your answer for household size (question 72) or for number in college (question 73); unless your answer was incorrect as of the date you originally signed the FAFSA.

Keep in mind that if the FAFSA also contains estimated tax information for your student, that information should also be updated to reflect the actual information from the 2011 tax return your student filed. ... Your student's ability to receive federal student aid can be impacted if you do not make the necessary updates or corrections.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.  If you have additional questions regarding the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, online help is available.  Visit www.fafsa.gov and click the "Browse Help" feature on the FAFSA home page for information on the tool and the FAFSA process.

U.S. Department of Education

Federal Student Aid

 OK!  Now I'm just angry - again!  I was angry that I had to provide all this information on the application in the first place.  It's just wrong.  So - since I could not reply to the email directly, I'm going to do it here.  I know they won't see it, but it makes me feel better having "replied" anyway.

Dear U.S. Department of Education,

This message is very insulting!  The federal tax filing deadline has passed?  Since when?  We will not be filing our returns until April 17th (the actual federal tax filing deadline), I can assure you of that.  Carl may be filing his earlier, but he is having trouble obtaining his W-2s.

The tax information we provided to you was a very educated estimate.  The amounts will not vary by more that 5% in either direction and should be more than adequate for you to complete your part of the approval process.
 

All that aside, it really is a mystery to me why you need all this information.  My son is nearly 20 years old.  A fully grown man and legally an adult; responsible for his own life and finances.  Why in the world do you need to know how much my wife and I earn when neither one of us is applying for assistance?  All you should be asking us is whether or not we will be aiding him financially in his educational goals.  Other than that, it's really none of your business!

Oh!  I love the part of your message that tells me "do not update other information that was correct at the time you filed" the application.  What?!?  If the information is correct, why would I update it?  But thanks for telling me.  Hell, I was ready to fill out the whole damn form again!  Whew!  So glad I don't have to do that...  Oh and I am allowed to update the incorrect information?  Really?  Thanks, I didn't know that...  My god you people are idiots.

If April 17th is too late for you to receive 100% accurate tax information, then you'll have to use the amounts we originally provided.

Have a wonderful day.  I know you've just brightened mine.

Mark Bonafe