By Shannon Holmes
December 12, 2005

Over the past three years The United States Conference of Mayors has been involved in a partnership with the Annie E. Casey Foundation to focus attention on what activities mayors can do to help working families achieve economic success. The Conference of Mayors has assisted mayors develop local outreach campaigns to increase the usage of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a refundable tax credit available to working families and individuals earning low and moderate incomes.

The Conference is committed to ensuring that the importance of this program is recognized in cities across the country. Eligible working families who file for EITC will receive an average of $1,900, and as much as $4,300 during this coming tax year. EITC is also good for the local economy. For every ETIC dollar returned, up to three dollars goes back into the local economy.

Independent studies have found that across the country up to 25 percent of eligible workers and families fail to claim the EITC they have earned and thus lose out on money that could help them become more self-sufficient. This creates a loss for the local economy.

Several cities across the country have developed models of effective EITC outreach and education campaigns including Fort Wayne, Denver, Fort Collins, Omaha, Boston, and Chicago. For more information about these models please contact Shannon Holmes at sholmes@usmayors.org or 202-861-6728.

What can mayors do to promote EITC in their cities:

• Develop and or join existing community efforts around EITC education and outreach, free tax preparation services, and asset building opportunities;

• Encourage businesses within the community to become involved in the community EITC initiative and utilize and promote the EITC; and

• Inform constituents about EITC by providing the necessary information about ETIC and the location free tax preparations sites in the city on the city’s website, in all city departments, and in the local One Stop Centers;

In the coming months we will provide you with information and tools you can utilize to establish an EITC campaign in your city, or to expand an existing one. Assistance is also available to you from the staff at the Conference of Mayors and resources are available at http://usmayors.org/uscm/uscm_projects_services/workingfamilies/.

To find out how many EITC claims are not being filed in your city or if you have any questions, contact Conference staff Shannon Holmes at 202-861-6728 or send e-mail to sholmes@usmayors.org.