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Administration for Children and Families US Department of Health and Human Services
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Office of Community Services -- Asset Building Strengthening Families...Building Communities

Updates on Tax Assistance and EITC: Planning for AFI Project Participation

Focus:

The call provided up-to-date information on IRS polices regarding Earned Income Tax Credits and the new option to split refunds. In addition, presenters and resource materials offered tips on how to maximize the benefits of free tax assistance services to AFI participants and for AFI project outreach and recruitment.

Key Points:
  • The split refund option, by which individuals may direct tax refunds to more than one account, offers both opportunities and challenges to AFI Projects and others who are involved with tax preparation. Participants may be flexible in using part of their refunds for their IDA savings, but programs need to think carefully when advising individuals on the best uses of their refunds.
  • To maximize benefits to participants, tax assistance and use of refund dollars should be integrated into financial education, not only a once-a-year exercise.
  • Tax assistance sites may or may not be good sources for recruitment to AFI Projects, depending on how they are set up and the capacity of the project for on-site education and follow up.
  • There are numerous sources of prepared tax outreach and educational materials, and the IRS provides training for volunteer tax preparers.
Presenters:
  • James Gatz, Manager, Assets for Independence Program, Office of Community Services
  • Tim Flacke, D2D Fund, Roxbury, MA
  • Danny Haire, Experiment in Self-Reliance, Forsyth County, NC
  • Anne Yeoman, Assets for Independence Resource Center
Resources:
  • Putting It All Together: An Asset-Building Model (.ppt 320KB) (.pdf 249KB)
  • Split Refunds: Building Savings at Tax Time (.ppt 373KB) (.pdf 340KB)
  • Build Savings at Tax Time: A Guide to Split Refunds (.pdf 1.9MB)
  • Updates on Tax Assistance and EITC: Planning for AFI Project Participation (.doc 479KB) (.pdf 443KB)

For more information on this topic, please contact the Assets for Independence Resource Center: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/assetbuilding; info@idaresources.org; 1-866-778-6037.