Washington – A pilot program that helped deliver tax refunds this year to people with disabilities and to low-income families is expanding nationwide.
The program, a public-private partnership to improve long- term financial independence for people with disabilities, began last year in New York City, Boston, Wichita and West Palm Beach, Fla.
Next year, the Real Economic Impact Tour will expand to 54 cities, including Charlotte, N.C.; Miami; Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minn.; Sacramento, Calif.; and Boise, Idaho.
The cities were selected based on their population of people with disabilities, the strength of groups there already helping people with disabilities and their geographic diversity, Michael Morris, the director of the National Disability Institute, said in announcing the program’s expansion Tuesday at the National Press Club.
“We project the 2007 Real Economic Impact Tour will assist over 25,000 persons with disabilities and generate over $20 million in earned income tax-credit refunds, which will in turn impact economies in participating cities,” Morris and Terry Simonette, the chief executive officer and president of NCB Capital Impact, one of the partners in the campaign, said in a statement.
The program will help Americans with disabilities file for the earned income tax credit, a refundable credit for low-income parents.
Even more important, Morris said, the program aims to provide financial education. The passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act in 1990 addressed civil rights and discrimination, but helping people with disabilities get a handle on their finances was left out of the conversation, Morris said.
The coordinated effort among cities, nonprofits and federal organizations to make financial education more accessible begins next week, when the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. unveils a money-management program in large print and Braille.
The Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas started collaborating in 2005 with the city of Wichita, the United Way, the local IRS office and AARP to help people with disabilities complete tax-refund forms.
Because of that work, Wichita was selected to be a part of the campaign, funded by the Ford Foundation.
“I’d like to say we are the heart of America,” said Wichita Mayor Carlos Mayans.
