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Tax
season ends with $20 million for
Philadelphia’s
low-wage families
PHILADELPHIA,
May 6, 2005 – Hundreds
of local volunteers boosted the paychecks of thousands of low-wage
workers this tax season, bringing $19.9 million in tax credits
to Philadelphia families.
The Campaign for Working
Families brought the millions to 11,000 families who filed income
tax returns at their 20 free tax sites, located in neighborhoods
throughout Philadelphia. Over the past three tax seasons, the Campaign
has brought a total of $45.2 million to low-wage families in Philadelphia.
The Campaign for Working
Families is a partnership that promotes free filing of the federal
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)/PA TAX BACK, and connects Philadelphia
residents to other tax credits, public benefits, and ways to keep
and grow their household incomes.
EITC
is a tax benefit for working people who earn low and moderate
incomes (less than $35,500 a year). It reduces the tax burden
on these workers, supplements their wages, and helps families
pay bills or save for the future. EITC
refunds can be up to $4,300 per year, based on family size and
income.
The
tax returns were prepared by 484 Campaign volunteers, all certified
by the IRS. Volunteer
recruitment and training was coordinated by United Way of Southeastern
Pennsylvania. This year’s results:
- $19.9
million went to low and moderate income working families in
Philadelphia. This amount includes the Earned Income Tax Credit
(EITC), child tax credit, dependent care credit, education
credit and state tax back refund. One hundred percent of the
refunds went directly to the tax filers. This
is a 32 percent increase over last year’s Campaign, which
brought in $15.1 million.
- Tax
returns were filed for 11,000 individuals at the Campaign’s 20 free tax-filing sites. Last
year we served 10,409 people.
- A total of 5,104 individuals
who filed taxes at Campaign sites claimed the EITC, a
- 40
percent increase over last year’s EITC number of 3,643. The average EITC
was $1,709. Last year’s average EITC was $1,452.
- $1.3
million went to families in Pennsylvania TAX BACK refunds,
a 536 percent increase over last year.
- The Campaign served low-income
workers. The median adjusted gross income
- of Campaign tax filers was
$14,410.
- The
preparation of tax returns by 484 Campaign volunteers resulted
in a savings of
- $2.3
million for low-wage families, who did not have to pay commercial
tax preparers’ fees,
charges and interest to claim their own money. (Calculation
based on tax prep fee charged by H&R Block of $169 per person,
plus 41% of their customers paying for Refund Anticipation Loan
at price of $99.95 per RAL.)
- Businesses
and schools that recruited 10 or more volunteers to prepare
tax returns at Campaign sites were recognized at the event. They are: The
Vanguard Group, Cozen O'Connor, Ballard Spahr, City of Philadelphia,
The Law School and Wharton Business School of the University
of Pennsylvania, Villanova, and Temple University.
- Citizens, PNC and Wachovia
Banks adopted 11 tax filing sites, providing information on
banking services and helping Campaign customers open bank accounts.
- The Campaign received 11,820
calls through its 24-hour Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
telephone information line. The phone line provided information
to callers about EITC eligibility and tax filing sites.
“We topped last year’s
strong results by 32 percent, for a total of $19.9 million going
directly to Philadelphia families. Add to this the $2.3 million
we saved 11,000 families by e-filing for them at Campaign sites
for free, avoiding predatory tax preparers,” said Jean Hunt,
executive director of The Campaign for Working Families.
“When a family gets
to use their entire EITC check for their own purposes, they can
begin to build their future. They can make a down payment
on a home, help pay for college, support their children’s
education or save that money. The result is a stronger community
and a stronger Philadelphia,” Hunt continued.
Philadelphia is one of more
than 40 cities nationwide to sponsor a campaign to alert families
to the EITC, the availability of free tax preparation services,
and the millions lost by tax time rip-offs, including Refund Anticipation
Loans.
In Philadelphia, about 45,000
eligible households do not file EITC claims, leaving approximately
$76.5 million in unclaimed credits.
The
Campaign for Working Families is a partnership that includes: Ceiba, City of Philadelphia:
Free Library and Mayor’s Office of Consumer Affairs, Community
Legal Services, Consumer Credit Counseling Services of the Delaware
Valley, District 1199c, Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against
Hunger, the Internal Revenue Service, PathWays PA, Philadelphia
Citizens for Children and Youth, Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO,
Philadelphia County Assistance Office, The Philadelphia Workforce
Development Corporation, The Reinvestment Fund, Transitional Work
Corporation, and the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania. The
Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition is the managing partner.
Support
for the 2005 Campaign for Working Families’ operations and activities comes from:
the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, The Annie E. Casey
Foundation, the Philadelphia Department of Human Services, the
Philadelphia Office of Housing and Community Development, Philadelphia
Workforce Development Corporation, The Samuel S. Fels Fund, American
Heritage Federal Credit Union, Claneil Foundation Inc. and Bank
of America. In-kind support: City of Philadelphia’s
Departments of Licenses & Inspection, and Public Property,
Corporation for National Service: NCCC and VISTA, Zion Non-Profit
Charitable Trust, Fannie Mae and all 16 Partner agencies (see above).
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