Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - April 25, 2001
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Alt Contact:  Kathy Davis, Office of Financial Management, 360-586-4066

Washington brings more tax credit dollars to state’s working families

OLYMPIA - Washington state helped residents get an extra $452 million in tax year 1999 during its second year of marketing the federal tax credit for struggling working families, Gov. Gary Locke announced today.

That amount represents a $16 million increase over tax year 1998, when Washington launched an aggressive public information campaign to encourage low- and moderate-income working families to file for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). Those dollars came mostly in the form of refund checks.

The EITC helped 305,450 state households in 1999, an increase of 3,550 from the previous year.

“For many working families in our state, the word 'tax' doesn’t have to be negative,” Locke said. “This tax credit can make the crucial difference in making ends meet. It can increase a low-wage family’s income by as much as 40 percent.”

The ongoing outreach campaign is funded with reinvestment dollars from the state’s WorkFirst welfare reform program. Increasing use of the EITC is a critical piece of the governor’s strategy to make work pay and help working families stay out of poverty.

Since earthquake-affected areas of Washington have until April 30 to file their federal income taxes, some eligible families could still take advantage of the EITC on their 2000 tax returns, Locke pointed out.

He urged low- to moderate-income workers to call the state’s toll-free hotline number at 1-800-755-5317 for EITC information, tax forms and referral to free tax assistance.

The hotline received 41,460 calls between February 1999 and March 2001 and outreach staff made 35,457 calls to people who were likely to be eligible for the tax credit.

The EITC outreach unit, operated by the Washington Employment Security Department, distributed more than a million marketing products, including brochures, posters, check stuffers and refrigerator magnets to businesses, organizations and agencies. More than 1,000 businesses requested information to provide to their employees.

The education campaign has included radio, TV and transit advertising. EITC staff has also made direct appeals through presentations to government agencies, community-based organizations and employer groups.

For the 2000 tax season, the EITC is available to workers with children earning less than $31,152 and to childless workers making less than $10,380 a year. The taxpayer’s income and the number of children living in the home determine the amount of the credit. The maximum credit for 2000 is $3,816.

» Return to this month's News Releases

» View News Release Archive