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Programs offer free income-tax advice
YOUNGSTOWN
Programs offering free help completing income-tax returns begin today, and that can mean thousands of dollars in refunds for local residents.
In 2010, about 2,600 Mahoning Valley residents who had their tax returns prepared free under two IRS- sponsored programs, Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA), received a combined $2,671,000 in refunds.
That’s an average of $1,027, said Ginny Pasha, director of community investment for the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, which is a member of the Mahoning Valley Economic Opportunity Coalition Partners.
For people with low and moderate incomes, the news is even better.
Based on 2010 data provided by the IRS, 544 of the 2,600 who filed received a combined Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) of $720,465, an average of $1,324 each, Pasha said.
Working individuals and families with limited income may be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit. The IRS estimates that 20 percent to 25 percent of eligible taxpayers do not claim the credit, which could put as much as $4,824 into the pockets of a family with two children, said Pasha.
Not everyone is aware of the EITC program, and one of the things the volunteer tax preparers are trained to do is alert people about EITC and other potential benefits to which they are entitled, she said.
VITA offers free assistance to taxpayers who file Form 1040EZ, Form 1040A, or a basic Form 1040 federal tax return. People with complex income-tax returns should consider using a professional tax service, Pasha said.
“It is a delight to help people. It’s just a shame that hard-working people just getting by would leave any money on the table. I help them get back every dollar to which they are entitled,” said Matthew Stefanak, a second-year volunteer tax preparer with the VITA program and commissioner of the Mahoning County District Board of Health.
Volunteers are IRS- certified and subject to peer review. Paid site-coordinators check the returns so clients are assured they are getting their returns completed correctly, Pasha said.
There also is money to be saved using VITA or TCE.
Taxpayers can save the fee of a professional tax-preparation service, which the IRS says averages $200. Also, they can avoid a charge to cash their check and interest on the loan that some tax preparers offer to give them their refund in advance, she said.
In addition, PNC Bank has two new programs to help people avoid a check-cashing fee and the refund loan interest, Pasha said.
One is a prepaid debit card, on which taxpayers’ refunds will be loaded by the IRS within 7 to 10 days. The card holder will receive the PNC debit card in the mail within 5-7 days. It can be used to shop in stores or at any PNC branch and is available at all VITA sites except the Mahoning-Youngstown Community Action Partnership (MYCAP). There are no costs.
Also, PNC is offering a free refund-check-cashing program at selected PNC branches for tax filers who don’t have a bank. Upon verification of filers identity and eligibility, PNC will cash refund checks of less than $10,000 through April 30. PNC says the service is not available at any of its in-store branches, and that the bank reserves the right to refuse service because of lack of identification or eligibility information, concerns about fraud or for any other reason deemed pertinent.
Youngstown State University is a founding member of the Mahoning Valley Economic Opportunity Coalition, which works to provide VITA and TCE services, and has been providing free tax-preparation services for more than 20 years. For the past three years, United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley has offered support to the VITA program that has made possible additional volunteers and sites in Mahoning County.
Free tax preparation, e-filing, and counseling on EITC eligibility is available today without an appointment from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance at YSU’s Williamson College of Business Administration and at Mahoning-Youngstown Community Action Partnership. All other days and all other sites require an appointment, Pasha said.
To make an appointment at YSU, call 330-941-2507. People may also call Help Hotline at 211 for information. They also can visit the United Way website at ymvunitedway.org and click on “VITA and TCE Tax Prep Calendar” or the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County website at libraryvisit.org and click on “Free Tax Preparation.”
Mahoning Valley Economic Opportunity Coalition Partners are: Community Legal Aid; Family Service Agency; Hands On Volunteer Network; Home Savings; Internal Revenue Service; Mahoning Youngstown Community Action Program; Neighborhood Ministries; The Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County; United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, and YSU.