Inquirer Article about deep cuts to volunteer tax programs

Posted by on August 20, 2012

Imagine a tax season without the Campaign for Working Families free tax sites.  No more families lining up outside Careerlink Northwest in Germantown.  No more parents visiting the Center City or Northeast super sites when they get off work like they have for years.  And no more community sites in neighborhoods like Point Breeze, Kensington or West Powelton.

Over the last ten tax seasons, the Campaign for Working Families has prepared more than 115,600 tax returns. Our services have generated over $190 million in refunds and saved clients and their families an estimated $25 million in fees.  Even more, we’ve helped over 1,800 clients access basic financial tools and completed over 900 public benefits applications and FAFSAs. But next tax season may look very different.

Just a few weeks ago, a substantial portion of the money used to fund this important work was cut from the state budget. That’s $300,000 for the next two years that vanished overnight leaving us questioning how we will keep all the tax sites open and meet our goals for the upcoming tax season.  The front page article in the Inquirer says it all.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-08-16/news/33217448_1_tax-credits-tax-credit-program-income

[Ed note: PHENND partners with both the Campaign for Working Families and PathWays PA, which were both featured prominently in this Inquirer article and both were impacted by the state’s cuts.]