Issued by: Beth Stafford
414-229-4800
bstaff@uwm.edu
Date: Feb. 20, 2002
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Issued by: Beth Stafford Date: Feb. 20, 2002 |
MILWAUKEE - Low-income taxpayers needing help with a federal income tax notice or IRS audit can get free advice at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC). Translation services in Spanish and Hmong also are offered free of charge. UWM's graduate tax students, alumni from UWM's MS in Management taxation program, and tax faculty work independently of the Internal Revenue Service, and can be contacted at 229-3232 or toll free at 1-866-896-5482. Taxpayers who phone will be directed to several community locations.
For example, UWM's LITC has partnered with UMOS (United Migrant Opportunity Services) on Mitchell and 9th Sts. to meet the needs of the Spanish-speaking community. The UWM LITC is at UMOS the first Saturday of each month from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. offering not only tax help but Spanish translation services. During 2002, the UWM LITC will be at UMOS on March 2, April 6, May 4, June 1, July 13, Aug. 3, Sept. 7, Oct. 5, Nov. 2, and Dec. 7.
For 2002, UWM's LITC was awarded a $70,000 grant from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to support clinic activities for 2002.The UWM School of Business Administration will provide $70,000 in matching funds, bringing the total committed to the clinic in 2002 to $140,000. The UWM LITC received $50,000 in 2001, with the university providing matching funds that brought the total to $100,000 for 2001.
UWM is one of only two clinics in the state of Wisconsin to receive funding. UWM received the highest LITC grant award in the state for 2002. UWM represents the only academic institution in Wisconsin to receive an award since the LITC grant program was established in 1998 under Internal Revenue Code Section 7526.
"Low-income taxpayers who have received a letter from the IRS on an individual tax matter related to the earned income tax credit, disallowance of filing status and dependents, or other individual tax matters can contact the clinic for free assistance," says Christine Bauman, assistant professor with the UWM School of Business Administration's accounting and taxation faculty and director of UWM's LITC.
The goal of UWM's LITC will be to provide low-income taxpayers of Milwaukee County and Wisconsin with free representation in tax controversies with the IRS. In that regard, the UWM LITC brochure will be given to all taxpayers who have their 2001 tax returns done at IRS VITA (volunteer income tax sites) in Milwaukee County. An estimated 10,000 taxpayers should be alerted to the valuable and free services offered by the UWM LITC.
2002 marks the second year that Bauman and her students have been involved with the LITC program. Bauman recently was a speaker at the 2002 National LITC training program sponsored by the IRS in New Orleans, where she discussed tax clinic start-up issues for academic institutions.
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