Zoom
Friday’s presser.
“There is no ‘VITA,’” John Merz was saying, “without the ‘V’ for ‘volunteer.’”
Merz, CEO of the Connecticut Association for Human Services, was participating in a Zoom press conference Friday afternoon to kick off this year’s community effort to help lower-income New Haveners file tax returns for free in order to qualify for refunds.
That effort is through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Earned Income Tax Credit campaign, which has become an annual event in town.
“Show me the money!” John Merz yelled as a Zoom call came to an end Friday. It might have been an odd way to shut down any other meeting, but it was par for the course at the VITA kickoff event this Friday, a combination of tax refund information, praise for partner organizations, and boisterous one-liners.
Other participating groups in the campaign represented at the press conference include the IRS, the City of New Haven, United Way of Greater New Haven, and VITA itself, which includes a site coordinator and program coordinator.
Speakers noted that the campaign is especially important this year, given financial hardship caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The campaign brought $9 million back into New Haven last year, helping residents save on tax prep while also ensuring that they receive their tax credits, according to United Way’s Kelly Fitzgerald.
Tax filing season begins Feb. 12. Panelists on the Zoom call said they expect this tax season to be be difficult.
While the pandemic has much to do with that, said VITA site coordinator Camila Guiza (who’s also an employee at Havenly Treats), tax season is also posing language barriers for many non-English speaking residents. The Arabic-speaking population, for instance, has grown at a rate not matched by resources. VITA can help address that, she said.
For those who wish to use VITA’s services or get free tax filing help, click this link and fill out contact information.
I volunteered with VITA a couple of years ago. I found the EITC calculation to be complicated, and I'm an Ivy League Ph.D. Nonetheless, most low-income workers with kids are eligible for it, and it is serious money. According to the IRS, the average credit in CT last year was a bit over $2,200.