Free tax preparation available for low-income residents

EL CENTRO – A free tax preparation service aimed at low-income state residents is currently available in the Imperial Valley Mall.

The non-profit Dreams for Change opened its first free tax preparation site at the mall on Jan. 25 and began offering e-filing on Feb. 12, according to CEO Teresa

Smith.

The service is available to California residents with an annual household income of less than $57,000. Among the program’s aims is helping qualified individuals and families connect with the federal and state earned income tax credits, as well as California’s Young Child Tax Credit.

The federal EITC is a refundable credit for households earning less than $57,000. The amount of the credit is dependent upon earned income, and it increases with children, up to three.

The CalEITC is a supplemental boost to the federal EITC. It was created in 2015 and targets taxpayers 18 and younger whose annual income is less than $30,000. The YCTC was introduced in 2019 and provides an additional $1,000 credit to CalEITC-eligible families with children younger than 6.

Since 2015, CalEITC and YCTC have returned more than $2.1 billion to low-income Californians. However, in a 2016 statewide survey conducted by the California Budget Policy Center, very few people who were likely eligible for the CalEITC had heard about it – only 17 percent.

This year, California has extended eligibility for the CalEITC and YCTC to those filing with an Individual Tax Identification Number. As a result, the state Franchise Tax Board expects $1.2 billion in claims between CalEITC and the YCTC.

The Dreams for Change tax preparation site at Imperial Valley

Mall is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. through 7 p.m. Appointments can be scheduled at https:// www.myfreetaxes.org/.

Smith said the site is accepting walk-ins without appointments, but there may be a wait.

For more information about Dreams for Change, go to https://www.dreamsforchange.org/.