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FREE & FAST
tax preparation sites celebrate their opening!
The Campaign
for Working Families
opens Free
Tax Preparation Sites throughout Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA, PA, January
31, 2006- Thanks to the Earned Income and Child Tax Credits
- and her determination to save much of the nearly $5,000 she received
from these credits at tax time - Cynthia Rios and her daughters
are well on their way towards their dream: a house of their
own.
Rios, accompanied by her
daughters Cynthia, 10, and Angelica, 2, spoke on Tuesday at the
launch of The Campaign for Working Families’ free tax preparation
sites, for tax season 2006.
Seventeen (17) free tax
sites, all managed by The Campaign for Working Families and located
in Philadelphia, opened their doors the week of January 28, in
time for tax filers to bring their W-2s (and other documents) for
fast and free tax services.
Rios explained that by going
to a Campaign-managed tax site, she received the most she has ever
gotten back for filing her income taxes, nearly $4,000 for the
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and an additional $800 for the
Child Tax Credit, in tax year 2005. “The money allowed
me to pay off my daughter’s tuition, pay off some debt, buy
a good used car and save toward the purchase of my first home.” A
savvy saver, Rios has grown these funds. “I am currently
enrolled in a savings program – called an IDA program - through
CEIBA where I have managed to save almost $3,000 for my home and
will be given $4,000 in matched funds, which I can use toward the
down payment on a house. My goal is a home of my own, within
a year.”
Rios
currently works full-time as a housing counselor and educator for
Congreso de Latinos Unidos, where the kick-off announcement was
held. Congreso is one of the Campaign’s 17 free tax
sites and one of six Campaign sites in Philadelphia with Spanish-speaking
tax preparers.
The locations of the Campaign's
free tax preparation sites and information on EITC eligibility
are available now by calling the Campaign's 24-hour bilingual (English-Spanish)
information line at 215-686-2599 or by clicking here.
EITC is a tax benefit for
working people who earn low and moderate incomes (less than $37,263
in calendar year 2005). 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 $4,400 per year, based on
family size and income.
Also speaking at the kickoff
event were State Rep. Dwight Evans, who introduced a state EITC
and
co-chairs the Governor’s
Task Force for Working Families and Jean Hunt, executive director
of The Campaign for Working Families.
Hunt reported that over
the past three years, the Campaign has brought more than $45.2
million directly into the homes of low-wage families. “This
is money that went to more than 31,000 hard working families and
money that strengthens our local economy,” she said.
Low-wage families now have
an alternative to costly commercial tax preparers and Refund
Anticipation Loans, according to Hunt. “The preparation
of tax returns by 382 Campaign volunteers last year alone resulted
in savings of over $1.4 million in interest, fees and charges for
tax preparation, Refund Anticipation Loans, a.k.a. ‘rapid
rip-off loans’, and check cashing.”
An estimated 39,000 eligible
households in Philadelphia do not file EITC claims, leaving approximately
$66.3 million in unclaimed credits. The Brookings Institution reports
that, in Philadelphia, more than 41 percent of EITC filers used
commercial tax preparers to obtain Refund Anticipation Loans (RALs).
The interest people pay for these loans can be as high as 700 percent – to
provide cash only a few days before refunds would have arrived
(and sometimes no sooner) anyway if the tax preparer used direct
deposit.
Philadelphia's Campaign
for Working Families is a nonprofit partnership that promotes free
filing of the federal EITC/PA TAX BACK, and connects Philadelphia
residents to other tax credits, public benefits, and ways to keep
and grow their household incomes. The Campaign is part of a national
movement to promote EITC, to provide free or low cost tax services,
and to protect taxpayers from rip-offs, including Refund Anticipation
Loans or Rapid Refunds.
The Campaign for Working
Families is managed by the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition
(GPUAC). It works with 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.
Support for the 2005 Campaign
for Working Families' operations and activities comes from: Pennsylvania
Department of Public Welfare, The Pennsylvania Department of Economic
and Community Development, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, The Philadelphia
Department of Human Services, the Philadelphia Office of Housing
and Community Development, The Philadelphia Foundation, Philadelphia
Workforce Development Corporation, The Samuel S. Fels Fund, North
Central Community Trust Board, American Heritage Federal Credit
Union, Claneil Foundation, Inc., the National Association of Black
Board Accountants and Verizon. In-kind support: Corporation
for National Service: NCCC and VISTA, and all sixteen Partner agencies
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