Filing income taxes can be overwhelming, and not everyone can afford to pay for expert advice to ensure they’re filing accurately and taking full advantage of available tax refunds. To assist these individuals, the Omaha Earned Income Tax Credit Coalition – a program funded in part by United Way of the Midlands – will oversee five free tax preparation sites in the metro area.
The Coalition, which is operated by Family Housing Advisory Services, prepares more than 6,000 tax returns for local residents annually. In doing so, it helps low-income individuals receive refundable credits such as the earned income tax credit (EITC), child tax credit and the additional child tax credit (CTC/ACTC) and the American opportunity tax credit (AOTC). In 2017, the EITC alone put approximately $305,000,000 back into the hands of Nebraska residents, an average of $2,360 per household