SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. - South Pittsburg is preparing to bring the Internal Revenue Service's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program to Marion County, but volunteers are desperately needed to do it.
VITA offers free help for low- to middle-income families, people with disabilities, the elderly, and limited English-speaking taxpayers who need assistance with their tax returns.
Now volunteers are needed for IRS-certified training to provide basic income tax preparation for tax season next year.
After training is complete, officials said the program mandates that returns always are double-checked by another certified preparer before they are electronically submitted.
Officials said the VITA program will start in January and will be set up at the town's old National Guard Armory building.
Site coordinator Bill Aries said he's not sure how many volunteers will be needed to get the program off the ground.
"That is the $64,000 question," he said. "Since this will be the first Marion County VITA site, we have no idea how many people will take advantage of the program. The short answer - as many as possible."
He said the program could provide a means for people to file their returns quickly without worrying that they made a mistake that will cost them money or trigger an IRS audit.
"Once we see how many volunteers we get, we will set our hours of operation and maximum number of returns," Aries said. "Right now, every volunteer we get means about 50 possible returns."
The Urban League of Greater Chattanooga, the IRS and the city of Chattanooga sponsor the program. Officials said it will be open to any resident of Marion County, but South Pittsburg will be the only available site in the county.
City Commissioner Jeff Powers, a certified public accountant, said he has served as a volunteer for VITA in other areas for a couple of years.
"It's really good experience, and you're giving back to the community," he said. "It's a good service as long as you don't have overly complicated returns."
City Administrator Sammy Burrows said he's proud Aries and his wife, Jenny, are taking the lead to facilitate VITA in Marion County.
"It's a pretty special program," Burrows said. "For them to step up and do this, I think it says a whole lot about them, but maybe it also says a lot about how they feel about our community and our county."
Interested volunteers should call 423-580-0042 for more information about the program.
Ryan Lewis is based in Marion County. Contact him at ryanlewis34@gmail.com.