NEW HAVEN – Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (Conn.-3) was today on hand to help kick off The Coalition for Working Families’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program for 2005. The annual campaign identifies and trains volunteers to provide free, basic income tax return preparation help to individuals who qualify. The program works through area community centers and is particularly helpful with assisting families determine which tax credits they may be eligible for. Last year, VITA helped families in the Greater New Haven community save more than $900,000 by taking advantage of tax credits like the Child Tax Credit, the Dependent Care Tax Credit, and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).

“These centers make a real difference to countless families in these and surrounding communities who are in need of someone who can help them claim these tax credits, but do not know where to begin,” continued DeLauro. “Helping working families retain more of their hard-earned income is at the heart of the VITA program.”

Every year, the EITC provides millions of working families with what is on average an additional $2,000 per year. EITC lifts more children out of poverty than any other federal program – five million people, including more than two-and-a-half million children, in all.

Tax refunds are largely spent locally by the working families for purchases such as necessary household items and school clothes, as well as on payments helping families to advance economically like college tuition, car repair in order to get to a job, or a down payment on a home.

“Reinvesting tax refunds in the community is a powerful driver for economic development and growth in our community,” said DeLauro. “The VITA program is not just helping families, it is also promoting community.”

This year, VITA will not only host sites at the Hill Health Center and Centro San Jose in Fair Haven, it will also expand to Envios El Pueblito in West Haven and ’rkids, inc. in Dixwell. With funding provided by Empower New Haven and recruiting assistance from Quinnipiac and the University of New Haven, they will again train volunteers and give them the resources to prepare tax returns for those who want to claim tax credits for their families.