PHOENIX -- Arizona will get a small portion of Internal Revenue Service matching grants which will help provide free tax assistance.
The IRS has designated $8 million in grants to support the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program.
The grants are distributed in communities across the country to help activists and community organizations which provide free tax help, often in low income neighborhoods.
In Arizona, $98,000 will go to the United Way of Tucson, $30,000 will go to the United Way of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff, and $14,750 will go to the Pascua Yaqui Tribe in Tucson.
The money will be used to train volunteers and increase the accuracy of returns. It will also be used to encourage more people to file returns electronically.
Individuals earning less than $49,000 a year are eligible for assistance. Last year, the VITA program helped 3 million people file returns.
