Community Partnerships

Free assistance in completing federal and New York income tax returns is available from Monday, January 24, until Friday, April 15, 2011, to area residents who earned $48,300 or less in 2010.

Appointments will be available during the daytime, evenings, and on weekends at locations in both Broome and Tioga Counties. To determine if they qualify for this free assistance and to make an appointment, local people should dial 2-1-1 (or 1-800-901-2180). Information also will be provided about the locations, times, and dates.

This free service is being provided through a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) grant awarded to United Way of Broome County as a collaborative effort with Tioga United Way and Broome County Department of Social Services. The volunteer tax preparers will be Binghamton University students and others who have completed extensive training in this area and have been certified by the Internal Revenue Service.

These volunteers will review all tax returns completed for eligibility for all tax credits and refunds. This includes the often overlooked Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC, which could put up to $5,600 or more in their pockets. This can be a needed financial boost for working people hit by hard economic times. Many people will qualify for EITC for the first time this year because their income declined, their marital status changed, or they added children to their families.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) estimates that 4,000 eligible Broome and Tioga County residents did not claim the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) when they completed their federal income tax returns in 2010. One result was that millions of dollars that could have flowed into the local area did not.

The volunteers will not be able to complete everyone’s income tax return, however. If a person’s tax return is relatively complex, he or she will be advised to seek professional tax assistance.

In addition, taxpayers with incomes under $58,000 can access a list of online sites where they can file their income tax returns for free by going to: http://www.irs.gov and clicking on the freefile logo.

For locations of free tax preparation and further information about the EITC, click here.

Updated: January 27, 2011