I figure that the current structures of taxes are inaccessible and intimidating for most people. There is a whole segment of the population who work and pay taxes but do not file taxes. This group misses out on tax refunds and special anti-poverty tax credit programs. In an in depth NewAmerican Foundation report called "Left on the Table", they highlight; "in 2009, an estimated 800,000 Californians, about one in five who are eligible, will fail to claim $1.2 billion in EITC refunds".
Here is an idea. Throw a tax party in your city. Rather than trying to market the opaquely acronymed program EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit), market the program as a tax party. I believe this works in small communities as well as large metro areas.
Here is an idea. Throw a tax party in your city. Rather than trying to market the opaquely acronymed program EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit), market the program as a tax party. I believe this works in small communities as well as large metro areas.
Neighborhood Tax Party
1 Week
1000 People
1 Million Dollars
This works only if you re-imagine VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) to be scalable and sustainable without a large surge in specialized volunteers. Empower individuals to do their own taxes, with limited guidance and general financial literacy programming.
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