“It’s very important; every spring, summer and fall after the tax season is over of course, I find out that people didn’t even know that we offered the service, after 19 years.”
That’s Brenda Brame. Program Manager for the Kent County Tax Credit Coalition at the Heart of West Michigan United Way. She says their office kicked off tax season with an Awareness Day on Friday, January 27th. It was the 17th anniversary of the nationwide effort to increase awareness about the earned income tax credit and free tax preparation site.
This year, United Way and the IRS are promoting EITC or earned income tax credit and providing information on other refundable tax credits that you may be eligible for.
“They can be eligible to child tax credit, the home heating credit, the homestead credit. And so they could qualify for all of that.”
Nationwide, as of December 2022, approximately 31 million taxpayers received over $64 billion in EITC. In Michigan, that number is $1.8 billion.
In Kent County, nearly $1 million was returned to taxpayers through Heart of West Michigan United Way’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.
Brame says they offer no-cost tax prep and returns through in-person appointments and online filing for those who qualify. Adding they have plenty of volunteers ready to help
“Everyone has been trained and IRS certified. I have over 150 volunteers ready and waiting to service anyone who gets into our sites.”
Brame says call 2-1-1 or go to their website at hwmuw.org for more information.
