"You can write that off, did you know that?"
It was a phrase used quite often by those that volunteered their time to prepare taxes for Montgomery County residents that could not afford assistance.
The Montgomery County Asset Building Coalition hosted the 2013 Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, which in total saved residents over $5 million, according to a report in the Times Herald.
“Our total federal refunds totalled $3.4 million; our state refunds were $950,000, so the total refunds to taxpayers were $4,360,000. That’s a lot of money,” Harriet Winokur, MCABC’s coordinator, told the Herald. “It gets better. Our services saved taxpayers approximately $675,000 in fees, which is not additional money into their pockets, but it’s money that stays in their pockets — so the total benefit to taxpayers is over $5 million."
For the full story on the savings and the Volunteer program, visit the Times Herald story here.