Salvation Army, United Way offer tax help

The United Way of King County and the Renton Salvation Army are offering free tax-preparation services through April 14.

Every year the United Way partners with organizations that serve low-income families and this year the Renton Salvation Army is hosting one of their locations.

Tax preparation will be available to those that make less than $50,000 and who need basic individual tax returns at the Salvation Army Food Bank, 206 S. Tobin St., in Renton. Internal Revenue Service-trained and certified volunteers will prepare the taxes and file them electronically for a quick refund.

They will be available Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 5 p.m. – 9 p.m. and Sundays noon – 4 p.m.

“For us this is an extension of the work we already do, helping struggling families retain more of their disposable income,” said Terry Masango, Salvation Army captain. “We know we save the families a couple of hundred dollars, had they paid for the tax preparation services fees and for the ‘fast loan’ charges. We’re excited to do this until mid-April.”

At the sites, customers can also sign-up for certain public benefits and learn about opportunities they have to make the most of their tax refunds by receiving their refund on a debit card or putting a portion of their refund into a U.S. Savings Bond.

The United Way is especially interested in serving people eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit, a tax credit for low-income working families and individuals.

According to the United Way’s web site, in 2010 600 volunteers dedicated 18,000 hours to the program. Volunteers prepared 14,000 tax returns and helped return $19.7 million in federal refunds back to the community, including $6.2 million in Earned Income Tax Credits. The tax preparation saved customers more than $1 million in tax preparation fees.

There will be multilingual tax preparers available at several sites to serve customers who do not speak English. For more information go to www.uwkc.org/