MTC’s Tax Help Efforts Brought $200,000 in Refunds
Volunteers filling out income tax forms for free approximately doubled the dollar value of tax refunds they brought back to the county this year.
In its first year, 2010, the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program filled out tax returns totaling $106,267 in refunds. This year, it filled out 130 returns totaling more than $200,000 in refunds, according to data provided to The Moultrie Observer this week. Of those 130 returns, 52 qualified for the Earned Income Tax Credit. Total EITC dollars added up to $92,137 — up from just over $37,000 in 2010.
The EITC, which primarily benefits working families with children, has been one of the prime emphases of VITA since it began. VITA’s surveys indicate it helped 102 households, according to Lori Glenn, coordinator for the Colquitt County Family Connection Collaborative, one of the agencies behind VITA.
According to the surveys collected, she said, 60 of the filers had health insurance, 33 were unemployed, 35 had savings accounts and 75 had checking accounts.
Once again, Moultrie Technical College stepped up to the plate in recruiting and training volunteers from its staff and student populations, Glenn said. MTC students who achieved IRS certification to prepare taxes through the VITA program will be recognized formally at a college ceremony later this month.
Click on the link below to read the article in its entirety as written by Moultrie Observer reporter Kevin Hall and published on June 8, 2011.
http://moultrieobserver.com/local/x1517691573/Tax-help-effort-brought-200-000-in-refunds
