SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN — Throughout February, March and April, Cass District Library and Niles District Library will be hosting United Way of Southwest Michigan’s VITA [Volunteer Income Tax Assistance] program, a nationwide opportunity for households and individuals that made less than $54,000 to receive help preparing basic tax returns. NDL will host the program from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesdays until April 10, and CDL will host the program at its main campus in Cassopolis 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays until April 13.

Tax season can be a stressful time of year, even for the most affluent and financially savvy of people. Aside from the financial burden, finding good help navigating the filing process can be difficult. But for folks who are low on the income ladder, tax season can be thrice problematic with finding reasonably priced tax assistance.

Sara Barlow, the project coordinator – impact with United Way SWM, said the program meets several needs for low-income earners in Berrien and Cass Counties.

“VITA’s purpose is to save families money and keep that saved money local,” Barlow said.

According to Barlow, the volunteer nature of the program is what keeps households and individuals returning to the program year after year. The volunteers are retired financial professionals, college students earning accounting degrees and other local professionals that often return every year and build rapport with the people they help.

“We get return clients, and I think they develop a rapport with volunteers and clients, which makes both parties feel comfortable,” Barlow said. “There definitely is relationship building there returning year after year.”

The volunteers that work with the VITA program are carefully vetted and trained, according to Barlow. They are accepted based on qualifying backgrounds and then are tested to ensure they are adequately equipped to assist those participating in the program. Barlow sees the free service of experts as a unique and useful asset for SWM communities.

“We’re letting the community know there are volunteers here to help them. I think the important thing is just the availability to assist everyone,” she said. “The extra cost to file can be an expense when they don’t have money to pay someone.”

While VITA is specific for basic tax return preparation for people who earned less than $54,000, those parameters still cover a significant demographic, according to Barlow.

Although library personnel will have little to no participation in the VITA program, NDL director Nancy Studebaker-Barringer said offering the library as a location for VITA is important because libraries are general information centers that belong to the entire community.

“We offer other services to all socioeconomic classes. This is one that we are able to offer,” she said. “We look to be a community hub to come and get information. We define information very broadly, and this falls into that category.”

Barringer also sees libraries as low-pressure environments for such services as VITA.

“Libraries offer a comfortable and welcoming place, and there can be longer hours than other public buildings,” she said. “There are a lot of advantages to being in the library. We offer it to do a lot of things, and with [NDL] we do have a really nice, really big, comfortable, clean building that’s ADA accessible. It’s what we look to do, to provide it.”

Readers interested in receiving help with VITA can set up appointments by calling 211, or 800-563-5432. Receiving tax assistance through VITA is by appointment only.