Volunteer Income Tax Assistance & Tax Credits

Supporting & Expanding VITA in Texas

On June 13 & 14, 2024, RAISE Texas will host our second Texas VITA Conference in Houston. Meet with Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) programs from all over the state to exchange ideas, discuss challenges, and learn how to improve and expand the vital work of VITA in Texas.  

Enjoy our 2023 Texas VITA Conference Insights report here.  Want to receive RAISE Texas emails on future events?  Sign up here.

Funding for VITA

• RAISE Texas VITA Toolkit: How to Secure Local Funding 
  Thank you to JPMorgan Chase and Share Our Strength for sponsoring this toolkit! 
• IRS VITA Funding in Texas + State Comparison
• Sample City Council Map to Make the Case for Local Funding:
  Download this Interactive City Council and Zip Code Map with 2021 Tax Season Data designed by Sofía Sánchez-Morales with Foundation Communities in Dallas.

VITA Outreach

• Presentation: Social Media 
  Blackhawk Digital Marketing
• Presentation: TV/Radio Outreach  
  Cristina Cave, Baker Ripley
• Sample: Press Release for Tax Season Kickoff
  Cristina Cave, Baker Ripley
• Sample: Program Details for Media
  Cristina Cave, Baker Ripley

VITA Volunteers

• Presentation: Provide a Best-in-Class Volunteer Experience
  Jackie Cuéllar, Foundation Communities
• Resource: "It's My First Day" Checklist
  Jackie Cuéllar, Foundation Communities
• Service Learning + Required Volunteer Hours for Accounting Students
  Practicum Syllabus
  Practicum Schedule
  Jackie Cuéllar, Foundation Communities
• Presentation: Online Advanced Certification Training
  Janet Andrasko, Florida Prosperity Partnership (FPP)

TaxSlayer Q&A

• Video of TaxSlayer Q&A
  Thank you to Sofía Sánchez-Morales for this recording!

Low Income Tax Clinics

• Resource: Contact List of Texas LITC Programs
  Mandi Matlock, Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid

Data: Help Texans Claim & Keep Tax Credits

• Presentation: San Antonio's Investment in VITA
  Richard Keith, City of San Antonio
• Sample Tax Season Analysis of Texas Counties
  Contact RAISE Texas if you are interested in an analysis of the Texas counties you serve. Note that TY2020 is the most recent publicly available data from the IRS. 
• Interactive Map of Earned Income Tax Credit Dollars Received in Texas by County in Tax Year 2019.  Map by Zip Code.  Maps created by Every Texan.
• Interactive Map of Additional Child Tax Credit Dollars Received in Texas by County in Tax Year 2019.  Map by Zip Code.  Maps created by Every Texan.
• Data on the local population living below the poverty line is helpful to show who will benefit most from free tax assistance and claiming the full EITC and CTC. You can find this information by county using this U.S. Census data tool or this report on High Poverty Areas by County from the Texas Workforce Commission. Consider looking at multiple years to demonstrate possible trends.

Thank you to the generous funding from these sponsors who support our VITA & tax credit work: