Volunteers Needed to Help Working Families with Tax Preparation
Volunteers are needed to offer free tax preparation to help working families receive the federal and state tax credits they are eligible for. No previous experience is required and training is provided.
In tax year 2015, 260 volunteers provided free income tax preparation for low- to moderate-income families as part of the Money in Your Pocket (MIYP) campaign, a community collaboration of organizations committed to the economic stability of local families. Nationally the effort is known as the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, or VITA. Volunteers filed 5,332 tax returns, resulting in more than $5.1 million returned to local families. This helped individuals and families increase their income by an average of six percent.
The Money in Your Pocket campaign received financial support from the PNC Foundation and the U.S. Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service.
“The Money in Your Pocket campaign supports personal financial growth and wellbeing by allowing individuals and families to better utilize their hard earned dollars,” said Adrienne Squillace, assistant vice president, PNC Community Development Banking. PNC is proud to continue supporting free tax preparation services that help strengthen the financial stability of low- and moderate-income households."
Volunteers will offer tax preparation services at designated sites in the Capital Region from January 30 through April 15, 2017 during day and evening hours. All volunteers will be trained to prepare computerized, electronic returns.
Informational sessions will be held at the following locations for those interested in finding out more about the program:
- Tuesday, October 4, 6-8 p.m. – Tri County Community Action, 1514 Derry Street, Harrisburg
- Wednesday, October 12, 6-8 p.m. – New Hope Ministries, 5228 East Trindle Road, Mechanicsburg
- Wednesday, October 26, 6-8 p.m. – Belco Community Credit Union, 449 Eisenhower Boulevard, Harrisburg
- Wednesday, November 2, 6-8 p.m. – Employment Skills Center, 29 S. Hanover Street, Carlisle
- Wednesday, November 2, 6-8 p.m. – Widener University Commonwealth Law School, Classroom & Law Library Building, Computer Lab, 3800 Vartan Way, Harrisburg
- Wednesday, November 9, 6-8 p.m. – Goodwill Keystone Area, 1150 Goodwill Drive, Harrisburg
- Thursday, November 10, 6-8 p.m. – Northern Dauphin Human Services Center, 295 State Street, Elizabethville
For information on volunteering, contact Heidi Neuhaus, director of United Way of the Capital Region’s Volunteer Center, at 717.724.4055 or by e-mail at hneuhaus@uwcr.org.
