Local United Way CEO to speak with congressional delegation

Cynthia Pritchard, CEO of the United Way of Greater Augusta, will travel to Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, to speak to local members of Congress to help working American families who may be struggling in the Greater Augusta community. Cynthia Pritchard will be meeting with the offices of Senator Mark Warner, Senator Tim Kaine, and Congressman Bob Goodlatte.

As part of United Way’s larger effort to improve financial stability Cynthia Pritchard will be advocating for:

• Tax reform priorities that help working families, including: protecting and strengthening working family tax credits, preserving charitable giving incentives, and supporting the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program.
• The Earned Income Tax Credit helps low-wage working families keep more of what they earn, and the Child Tax Credit helps families offset the cost of raising children.  Research shows that the two tax credits lifted 9.4 million people out of poverty between 2009 and 2011.These credits should be kept whole, and expanded for childless workers.
• Whether Congress proposes a cut, cap, floor, or ceiling on the charitable deduction, giving would be reduced and local communities would pay the price. Congress should reject all proposals to limit the charitable deduction
• The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA), funds volunteers to become IRS-certified tax preparers and help low-wage people file tax returns for free. Most families benefiting from VITA earn less than $53,000/year, and include people with disabilities, limited-English speakers and the elderly.  This year, 90,000 VITA volunteers working at more than 11,000 locations prepared more than 3 million tax returns nationwide. Returns filed by VITA programs brought more than $2.4 billion back in refunds for low-wage taxpayers, and helped working families access the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credits they’re eligible for.