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Free Tax Preparation Help On Hand For Low-Income Families in Ventura County

With the May 17 tax filing deadline just days away, low-income families in the region are being offered free help to prepare their taxes and obtain tax credits which could be as much as $4200.

Households earning less than 57000 dollars are invited to drop off their tax documents this morning between 10 and noon with The United Way of Ventura County at 702 County Square Dr., Ste. 100 in Ventura.

Volunteers will be available to review filers’ tax documents, make photocopies and forward them to trained volunteer tax preparers.

“These tax credits provide critical support to Ventura County families hit hard by the pandemic so they can afford groceries, pay rent, and cover their daily expenses,” said Susan Englund, Vice President of Community Impact at United Way of Ventura County.

“They worked hard for this money, and we encourage people to file immediately so they can put that money in their pocket sooner and support their families.”

Many families who qualify for the California Earned Income Tax Credit and Golden State Stimulus don’t know about the programs and how they need to simply file their taxes to receive the credit.

There are more than 800,000 families statewide who are eligible for one of the programs but have yet to apply.

The Golden State Stimulus (GSS) is a one-time payment of $600 or $1,200 per tax return that is available to families who have an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) filer earning up to $75,000, while the theCalifornia Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC) ranges from $243 to just over $3,000 and is available to families with incomes up to $30,000.

Caroline joined KCLU in October 2020. She won LA Press Club's Audio Journalist of the Year Award in 2022 and 2023.

Since joining the station she's won 7 Golden Mike Awards, 4 Los Angeles Press Club Awards and 2 National Arts & Entertainment Awards.

She started her broadcasting career in the UK, in both radio and television for BBC News, 95.8 Capital FM and Sky News and was awarded the Prince Philip Medal for her services to radio and journalism in 2007.

She has lived in California for ten years and is both an American and British citizen - and a very proud mom to her daughter, Elsie.