The Opportunity

Following an 11-fold surge in the number of clients served and refunds returned, “We were proud of the growth of tax credit outreach in our own organization and shared our success with others,” recalls Tim Whelan, Vice President of Community Impact with United Way of the Capitol Region (UWCR) in Enola, Pennsylvania.  “Both community organizations and United Ways in different counties started inquiring about our approach and requesting resources so they could replicate efforts in their own communities.”

“It quickly became clear that to really build upon this interest and momentum we needed to do more than just share the steps we took,” states Heidi Neuhaus, Volunteer Center Director with UWCR.

VITA Volunteer helping a client.

The Opportunity Fulfilled

“We decided to take it to the next level and partner with organizations to help establish local coalitions so that the outreach efforts would become institutionalized and sustainable,” says Heidi.

Tim and Heidi partnered with local United Ways in three neighboring counties to establish the foundation for the coalitions.  Sharing resources such as a New Site Checklist and Implementation Timeline helped each coalition begin its outreach efforts with maximum effectiveness.  UWCR mentored these organizations in the early stages and all are now self-sustaining.

Through this initiative, Tim and Heidi exploded six myths about coalition-building and tax credit outreach.

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Tim & Heidi’s Six Myths About Tax Credit Outreach and Coalition-Building

1.      You need lots of money. Access to money makes a tremendous difference with outreach efforts, but you do not need a huge budget.  We spend about $1,500 per year, mainly on radio promotions.

2.      Organizing free tax preparation services doesn’t take a lot of time. People underestimate how long it takes to organize outreach efforts and establish VITA sites.  You can’t begin in January and have everything up and running by the start of the tax season.  We created an Implementation Timeline that identifies tasks to complete throughout the year to help make VITA site coordination flow more smoothly.

3.      Delegation is the best method. Simply telling people how they should contribute to outreach activities is not effective.  If an organization doesn’t also step up to help with site management, recruiting volunteers, or other specific tasks, outreach efforts will not be sustainable.  We’ve found a community-organizing approach that allows partnering organizations to demonstrate their commitment to outreach through their actions to be essential in coalition building.

4.      Any organization that you have a good relationship with can be a great partner. Any organization can contribute to tax credit outreach activities, but organizations that have the capacity to manage day-to-day systems are crucial for stability and growth.  Some United Ways have very small staff, so we sought out organizations that could specifically serve as a managing partner.

5.      Enthusiasm is enough. Passion and enthusiasm about tax credit outreach activities are wonderful but will only carry an emerging coalition so far.  A local champion who knows the community is critical.  We found that efforts to establish a coalition in communities without a local champion didn’t flourish.  In many communities, United Ways can serve as a local champion, but if not, Community Action Agencies are another potential partner to fill this role.

6.      Volunteers play a minor role. Most organizations don’t really believe this, but their actions may convey this message to volunteers.  Volunteer recognition is important.  In addition to a recognition ceremony, we hold a debriefing after tax season to get feedback about how to improve for next year.  We then make sure to act on that feedback, which we believe helps account for our high volunteer retention rate.

Heidi Neuhaus is the United Way of the Capital Region’s Director of the Volunteer Center.  Tim Whelan is a 2006 Tax Credit Outreach Train-the-Trainer participant and Vice President of Community Impact.

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Fact or Fiction – what is your experience with these myths?

The Opportunity

“Tax preparation fast & easy!”  “Fast, accurate and with money back guarantee.”  “Get Your Tax Refund FAST!!”  Signs like these across Houston, Texas make commercial tax preparers’ services appear to be the best option in town.  In contrast, many low-income residents have been unsure whether they can trust free tax preparation through the VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) program, observes Cecilia Joseph, Director of Operations at the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF). “Families didn’t have the whole story,” states Cecilia.  In collaboration with her colleagues, Cecilia developed a plan to increase use of VITA services.

Cecilia Joseph, 2005 Train-the-Trainer Participant.

The Opportunity Fulfilled

In 2005, Cecilia began to examine why the longest lines were at paid tax preparers rather than the free income tax preparation site nearby.  She was already a leader in her community for outreach on benefits that she felt were better understood—the Medicaid and CHIP programs for children’s health insurance.

“For the health outreach, we go out year-round and meet with families at their schools,” she noted.  “In our community, the free tax sites were only active during the few months of tax season and weren’t able to communicate a message that built trust with most families.”

Cecilia and the CDF outreach team obtained outreach materials from the IRS to distribute along with health insurance applications.  “We have tied outreach for the Earned Income Tax Credit and free tax assistance into our 100% Campaign for health outreach,” Cecilia says.  Cecilia and four other CDF employees visit schools multiple times per week and let every family know they might be eligible for refundable tax credits. “Word of mouth and trust take over from here.  Although we don’t file the taxes ourselves, we can tell that awareness has increased based on our daily conversations.”

CDF has expanded its health and tax outreach efforts by visiting apartment complexes and by partnering with a faith-based initiative to get the word out in local churches.   The team works with the local tax credit outreach campaign, Free Tax Houston, to promote its community-wide events and make connections with other community organizations.

Success breeds success as the campaign expands.  “One year, we partnered with the Mayor’s Office of People with Disabilities to provide a one-time free tax clinic at the Houston Center for Independent Living.  Afterward, the Center for Independent Living wanted to increase their involvement, and they actually found residents at the Center — people who had disabilities themselves — who were able and willing to act as volunteers for their own VITA site.”

Activities like these have made VITA a more regular and visible — and thus more trusted — part of the community.

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What approaches have you tried to build trust and increase use of VITA sites in your community?

How do you share information about the tax credits outside of tax season?

When Elizabeth Trapp and Eastern Michigan University educate graduate students about the EIC and CTC, the lessons reach far beyond the classroom.

The Opportunity

Elizabeth Trapp was a graduate student in the Master of Social Work (MSW) program at Eastern Michigan University — and also the Aquatics instructor at the Ann Arbor YMCA — when she attended the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities’ Tax Credit Outreach Training Seminar in 2007. Inspired by the two days in Washington, Elizabeth returned home riding a wave of enthusiasm, eager to put to work all she had learned. She soon realized a tremendous opportunity was right in front of her: all the students in her program were completing field placements in community-based organizations.  Their involvement could be the start of community-wide tax credit outreach activities!  In order to encourage groups to embrace tax credit outreach, Elizabeth had to ensure that students understood why the credits could mean more than just a refund check for families and convince them their investment of time and effort would be worthwhile.

Elizabeth Trapp, 2007 Train-the-Trainer Participant.

The Opportunity Fulfilled

Elizabeth’s first step was to seek the cooperation of her professors, several of whom agreed to display “Money Talks” posters on their office doors. Next, Elizabeth dove into the deep end of the pool: She created a community tax credit outreach training model that “spoke the language” of the MSW students and showed them how to incorporate outreach into their field placements.   Elizabeth tied the training to the course curriculum of the ‘Empowerment: Social Justice and Social Change” class by assigning two relevant academic articles and asking students to discuss and write about the environmental factors affecting Michigan’s low-wage workers.  Elizabeth facilitated a brainstorming session to help students explore the connection between refundable tax credits and both individual and community empowerment.  For example, on the micro level, the tax credits can enable a family to take control of its finances, and on the macro level, the credits can help reduce income disparities.

Finally, students were asked to commit to specific outreach activities for the upcoming tax season.  For example, Elizabeth reports, “Students who are case managers agree to inform every client about tax credits.  Students working in other capacities generally commit to educating their coworkers about outreach, and to utilizing tax credit flyers and posters.”   Since many students continue to work at their field placement agencies or similar organizations after graduating, the tax credit trainings for MSW students have a lasting impact. Over the years Elizabeth has observed an increase in tax credit outreach activities in her community.

Following her own graduation, Elizabeth continued to conduct trainings for MSW students each fall, as well as for fellow YMCA staff and a group of non-traditional students in a scholarship program at Eastern Michigan University. She coordinates with the local 2-1-1 agency to publicize free tax preparation sites and helps her training participants to connect with a local women’s resource center that educates tax preparation clients about how they can file for themselves in the future.  “People think tax credits are overwhelming” Elizabeth says.  “The trainings show students that sharing basic information can change lives and have a big impact. In this economy, we need as much help as possible to reach people who are eligible for the EIC and CTC, especially those who may qualify for the first time.”

It’s true.  For many families who are treading water these days, the credits can play a role in determining whether they sink or swim.  Elizabeth’s efforts have undoubtedly helped many stay afloat.

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What groups exist in your community (such as MSW students) who can help advance local tax credit outreach efforts?

How can you “speak the language” of the group and tailor your outreach approach?

The Opportunity

After first publishing The Federal Tax Guide for Foster, Adoptive and Kinship Caregivers in 2007, the National Foster Parent Association (NFPA) in Tacoma, Washington wanted to identify additional ways to help foster parents receive guidance and specialized tax assistance to file their tax returns.

“When it comes to this population, there are a lot of tax concerns that VITA trainings do not cover and even sending a foster parent to a paid preparer can result in mistakes on the tax return,” says Christin Kundert, former Program Services Director for NFPA.  “Tax preparers don’t always know how to treat foster care payments and sometimes incorrectly conclude foster parents are ineligible for the EIC and CTC because they receive support through foster care payments.  As a foster parent, I know first hand how overwhelming it can be to have to independently navigate through the tax filing process.  Others shouldn’t do it alone like I did, but foster parents need to be able to trust that if they go to a tax professional they will receive complete and thorough service.”

Christin Kundert, 2006 Train-the-Trainer Participant.

The Opportunity Fulfilled

“It was clear that we would have to provide the specialized training for tax preparers on the specific tax issues related to foster care,” states Christin.  Initially, NFPA decided to pilot a project to conduct training on those issues with VITA volunteers in King County.  When coordinating the logistics of the training became too challenging for all of the VITA sites involved, Christin decided on an alternative:  Enrolled Agents, or tax preparers whom the federal government has authorized to represent taxpayers before the IRS for audits, collections, and appeals.  A former Enrolled Agent herself, Christin knew that these tax professionals would be able to assist foster parents with their tax returns.

Christin conducted a training for 30 Enrolled Agents on tax issues related to foster care so that they could provide their specialized skills to foster parents at ten different locations throughout the state on February 28, 2009, which NFPA designated as tax day for foster parents.  Some Enrolled Agents also offered their services to foster parents at a discounted rate during the rest of the tax season.  The Washington State Society of Enrolled Agents arranged a special toll-free number for foster parents to call Enrolled Agents for assistance.

“Enrolled Agents are used to working with higher-income taxes, so this provided a chance to become more familiar with lower-income taxes,” recalls Christin.  “Enrolled Agents were enthusiastic about their participation, since the change of pace in taxes was like a break for them and they felt that they were giving back to the community.”

This pilot project was successful enough that NFPA is now working with the National Association of Enrolled Agents to create a national model for a partnership between Tax Credit Outreach Campaigns and local Enrolled Agents to provide free tax assistance to foster parents.

Through this experience, Christin learned some key lessons about developing successful collaborations.

Click here to find out Christin’s 4 Tips for Building Effective Partnerships.

Christin Kundert worked with the National Foster Parent Association for 5 years.  For more information about the partnership with the National Association of Enrolled Agents email: ckservices@msn.com.

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Have you used these tips before?  What has been important for you to form fruitful partnerships?

The Opportunity

Just as the Atlanta Prosperity Campaign (APC) was preparing to celebrate the end of its first season providing free tax preparation assistance in 2008, Campaign Manager Carter Elliott learned about the need for outreach efforts to help eligible seniors and veterans with disabilities claim their Economic Stimulus Payments (ESP).  Carter didn’t want to wear down his existing volunteer tax preparers.  But he was determined to help eligible residents receive their ESP.

APC VITA volunteer helping a client.

The Opportunity Fulfilled

“Since the IRS didn’t require volunteers completing tax returns only for stimulus payments to be certified, we recruited 50 new volunteers to continue ESP outreach through October 15, 2008.  We were very successful in recruiting college students and accountants.  Because this was a short-term project and the volunteers did not need to be certified to prepare the simple ESP returns, it was easy to find volunteers.  I was able to provide just a script for the volunteers and asked them to participate in a short training session,” recalls Carter, a participant in the Center’s 2005 Tax Credit Outreach Train-the-Trainer Seminar.  With this team of new volunteers, APC — a project of the Atlanta Community Food Bank — conducted 25 ESP tax preparation events during the summer of 2008 and collaborated with the IRS, AARP, and Georgia Rural Legal Services to conduct a three-day tax return blitz across the state in mid-September. In total, APC filed 1,100 tax returns for stimulus payments, primarily for seniors and veterans with disabilities.  To reach this population, the APC arranged visits to senior complexes and community centers.  This is in addition to the 8,317 tax returns completed at 44 free tax preparation sites, including 4 mobile sites during the regular tax season.

In 2009, APC expanded the number of its VITA sites to 56 including 10 mobile sites and added asset-building opportunities to help tax filers maximize their refunds.  APC worked with four financial institutions to help residents open bank accounts; screened residents for eligibility for public benefits at VITA sites using online programs such as “EarnBenefits”; and partnered with a credit union to pilot a low-cost refund anticipation loan service at two VITA sites.  This service provided an alternative to the high-interest loans marketed by paid tax preparers to receive a tax refund quickly.

Carter credits APC’s success in its ESP outreach and first two years of free tax preparation to the Campaign’s strategic approach to outreach. 

Click here to see Carter’s 10 Key Elements for Successful Tax Credit Outreach.  Then let us know what you think!

Carter Elliott is the Campaign Manager for the Atlanta Prosperity Campaign, a project of the Atlanta Community Food Bank. He is a 2005 Tax Credit Outreach Train-the-Trainer participant.

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Which of Carter Elliott’s key elements are part of your current approach?  What would you add to the list?