---
title: "The season"
url: https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax/season
captured: [tax-season.txt]
---
# The season

URL: https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax/season

> How the preparers' Pool holds the filing season. Standby retainers in two windows, spring and October, the fill ladder under a tight market, the extension that spreads the spring crunch into the autumn, and Pool health on the owner console.

*tax's words: return is a job, taxpayer is a subject, review is a task, preparer is a member (examples/tax/brand.ts).*

Tax work comes in two waves: the spring, when most returns fall due, and October, when the extensions do. The preparers' Pool buys committed capacity for both with `standby`, and the clocks decide how much work lands in each.

```bash
npx services.dev check pools/preparers.ts --only standby
```

```txt title="magic values: none"
pools/preparers.ts · 27 lines · practitioners · standby in two windows
  standby  Feb 1 to Apr 15 · 20 hours a week · $400 a week, paid Fridays, on top of each act's pay
           Sep 1 to Oct 15 · 15 hours a week · $300 a week, paid Fridays, on top of each act's pay
  offers   each review goes to standby members first, then the Pool · Away weeks are unpaid and free
  plan     Team (services.dev) · Pool.standby at :32
```

## Standby

A standby member commits hours for a window and is paid a weekly retainer on Fridays, on top of each act's pay. Every review posts to standby members first, then to the Pool.

| Window | Hours a week | Retainer | When the work is |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 February to 15 April | 20 | $400 a week | the year's returns, due 15 March or 15 April, and each extension three days out |
| 1 September to 15 October | 15 | $300 a week | the extended returns, due 15 September or 15 October |

An Away week is unpaid, and declaring one costs nothing else. Committing is the member's choice each season, and a standby member who passes a review is never scored for it.

## Under load

A tight market, 340 returns and 12 members, five on standby. Standby fills most reviews; the Pool takes the rest. A review unclaimed at two hours rises 10%, and a raise is never taken back:

```bash
npx services.dev tick --to 2027-04-16 --test-clock tc_7Hq7 --market tight
```

```txt title="magic values: none"
tc_7Hq7 · 2027-02-01 09:00:00 → 2027-04-16 09:00:00 · 3,912 fired
  weeks       11 · standby 5 members × 20 hours · $22,000.00 in retainers, paid each Friday
  reviews     318 posted · 318 filled · 271 by standby, offered first · 47 by the Pool
  fill        median 38 min to a claim · 29 raised 10% at 2h, never taken back · 3 raised twice · none unfilled
  extended    104 returns waiting on their books · each state's extension filed 3 days out by its own rule · their reviews move to Aug–Oct
  late        0 · dates at risk peaked at 6 on 2027-04-12, each cleared by its rung
```

## The extension is the valve

A return still waiting on its books three days out doesn't wait for a person. Its file clock deposits the tentative tax and files each state's extension by that state's own rule, so its review moves to the autumn window instead of the last week of spring. [The dates to file and pay](https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax/deadline.md) shows the rung:

```bash
npx services.dev tick --to 2027-10-16 --test-clock tc_7Hq7 --market tight
```

```txt title="magic values: none"
tc_7Hq7 · 2027-04-16 09:00:00 → 2027-10-16 09:00:00 · 2,640 fired
  weeks       6 in the window · standby 4 members × 15 hours · $7,200.00 in retainers
  reviews     104 extended returns signed · 97 by standby · 7 by the Pool · 11 raised at 2h
  late        0 · the last federal and New York legs filed 2027-10-13 · California and New Jersey by 2027-11-12
```

## Pool health

The owner console reads the season back: who is on and away, how fast reviews fill, what the season paid in acts and retainers, which credentials renew, and the cover:

```bash
open http://localhost:8787/console#pool   # Pool health, on the owner console
```

```txt title="magic values: none"
practitioners · 12 members · 11 on, 1 away · 5 on spring standby, 4 on autumn
  this season   422 reviews · 100% filled · median 38 min to claim · 9.4% raised · $43,890.00 in act pay · $29,200.00 in retainers
  credentials   12 PTINs fresh to 2027-12-31 · 4 renew notices sent 1 Nov · 3 EA · 5 CPA, NY 3, NJ 2 · 1 CTEC · 3 PTIN only
  legs          California's repairs went to the 9 members who may prepare them · a CPA signs the federal leg and their own state's, an EA every leg
  coverage      $500,000 an act · 0 claims · tails open to 2030-10-15
```

[The preparers' Pool](https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax/pool.md) has every other key, and [Fill](https://services.dev/docs/people/pool/fill.md) the ladder for any Pool.

---

- Up: [The tax example](https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax.md)
- Previous: [The preparers' Pool](https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax/pool.md)
- Next: [A year, and the next](https://services.dev/docs/examples/tax/years.md)