Earned Income Tax Credit Campaign Aims To Put Money Back Into Californians' Pockets

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Mayor Villaraigosa and other civic leaders launched a new campaign today to raise awareness about the earned income tax credit, or E-I-T-C. The tax credit is available to families earning less than fifty-thousand dollars a year. It allows them to receive up to five thousand, seven hundred dollars in Federal Income Tax refunds.
But the I-R-S estimates that one in five families who are eligible for the credit don't claim it.
State Comptroller John Chiang says the problem is the tax code.
"We understand... how complicated taxes are. There are ten and a half million words between the Federal and State tax codes. Most people don't have a clue."
So how will the new campaign help residents claim their tax credits? The plan is to use the infrastructure that's already in place. L-A is home to twenty-one family source centers. These centers provide communities with services like after-school tutoring for kids and English lessons for their parents. Mayor Villaraigosa says these centers will now also provide tax services.
"Now every family-source center will become a defacto volunteer income tax assistance site, helping families identify the credits they qualify for, helping them apply for those credits. So our message to Angelenos today is simple: get the free help you deserve."
Officials estimate that eight hundred thousand Californians failed to claim their tax refund last year. That represents one point two billion dollars in lost revenue to the State economy.

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