Alice VITA IRS volunteers honored by CBC

Headline: Alice VITA IRS volunteers honored by CBC

This tax season, students and faculty from the Coastal Bend College (CBC) Alice site participated in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) program. CBC’s participation in the tax preparation programs provided members of the community and surrounding areas with free tax preparation assistance services.

The free programs took place at CBC Alice beginning Tuesday, January 19 and ended Friday, April 15. Volunteers included accounting/business technology students, accounting/business technology faculty, and members of the community.

Students who volunteered were recently honored on April 29 at an appreciation banquet. Volunteers honored include:

Jessica Alaniz- 105 hours

Mariah Cavazos- 40 hours

VITA/TCE Site Coordinator, Janie Hinojosa- 90 hours

Jasmine Lara- 78 hours

Katrina Martinez- 56 hours

Adelina Saenz- 115 hours

VITA/TCE Site Coordinator, Vicky Trevino- 203 hours

In addition, CBC’s Professor of Professional Business Technology Juanita Dominguez also participated in the programs as a volunteer and earned 80 hours. Volunteers at the CBC Alice site who assisted in the tax preparation services processed a total of 82 electronic tax returns yielding $107,167 in refunds.

Individuals were required to successfully complete a rigorous training provided by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) before volunteering with the programs. Services that were provided to community members free of charge include free basic income tax return preparation with electronic filing, explanation of tax credits/deductions, and answering basic tax return questions.

Members of the community and surrounding areas who utilized the VITA program’s services include individuals with an annual income of $54,000 or less, individuals with disabilities and individuals who speak limited English. Tax preparation services were also provided to individuals 60 years of age or older through the TCE program. This program specializes in providing individuals with information about pensions and retirement.

For more information about CBC’s accounting and business technology program, please visit the College’s official website at www.coastalbend.edu/busadmin/.