Earn Well
“Free Tax Help” Campaign Helps Working Families Claim Tax Credits
Income tax season has arrived, and with it a multi-faceted publicity campaign to help more low-income working families get all available tax credits. Part of United Way’s Earn Well financial stability initiative, the “Free Tax Help” campaign is using bilingual billboards, bus bench ads, door hangers, posters and postcards to point people to free tax preparation centers funded by United Way and operated by Catholic Charities.
“We really wanted to reach out to people, so we have multiple ways for people to see and hear about us,” said Sue Matkin, United Way Vice President of Community Development. The publicity is focused in areas of Tarrant County where the Internal Revenue Service says many people who qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) don’t claim it.
Many households don’t know the government offers this and other benefits such as child and education tax credits to provide extra cash for working families struggling to make ends meet. Other people don’t know how to go about claiming them.
Free Tax Preparation Center Locations and Hours of Operation
EITC dollars claimed through the free tax preparation centers increased from $894,000 in 2010 to $1.77 million last year. “We want to keep doubling it—or more—every year,” said Sue. She noted that the 440 additional families who received EITC refunds last year increased their annual income by an average of 10 percent.
Besides providing extra money for families, EITC dollars boost the local economy as they circulate through the community.
The “Free Tax Help” publicity materials encourage people to call United Way’s 2-1-1 for more information. 2-1-1 helps schedule a tax preparation appointment at a convenient time and location. People also can text REFUND (or REEMBOLSO in Spanish) for more information. “Once we have their numbers, we can text people back later to remind them of their appointment,” said Sue. A “Refer a Friend” promotion with a drawing for gas and grocery gift card prizes is designed to get more people to the tax preparation centers.
This year there are 11 centers, including a mobile unit of volunteers and equipment that travels to numerous churches, community centers and nonprofit organizations. The non-mobile centers are open days, evenings and weekends.
About 260 volunteers donated more than 6,100 hours to help at the centers last year. “We still need volunteers to sign up for this year, especially tax preparers and translators,” said Sue. All of the volunteer tax preparers are trained and certified by the IRS. To learn more about specific volunteer opportunities, click here.
Our Vision
Tarrant County will be a place where children, individuals and families thrive, where neighbors care for each other and where people willingly share the responsibility of ensuring a safe and healthy community for all.
Our Mission
To improve lives across our diverse communities by:
- Prioritizing needs in education, income and health
- Forming innovative and effective partnerships with other organizations
- Strategically raising and investing resources to make lasting change
Our Diversity Statement
United Way of Tarrant County values and seeks diversity by respecting the knowledge, abilities and experience of all individuals. Our commitment is to support an inclusive environment reflecting our United Way communities and accomplishing our mission.
