Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program Research Articles

Implementing a service learning Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program: Recruiting college student participants and understanding the benefits to all stakeholders

Service learning for business students is an important activity for learning professionalism while adding volunteer and leadership experiences to their resume. The purposeful inclusion of in-field volunteerism in the accounting curriculum by participation in the USA’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program each spring offers a host of additional benefits for students, as well as their communities and educational institutions. To better understand and identify these stakeholder benefits, the authors surveyed participants and found that students gained both career building work skills and community and social awareness, while community participants increased their personal satisfaction. Given the overall student benefits from participation, the second phase of the exploratory research examined ways to increase student participation for future VITA programs, because the success of any VITA program depends on both the strength and the presence of sufficient student volunteers. Faculty suggestions for recruiting are presented along with areas for future research.

VITA in a marketing research course: It’s not just for accounting students anymore

The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program provides free income tax preparation and filing services for low- and moderate-income households. Accounting students from universities across the U.S. have provided these services for many years. A partnership has been in place for five years between VITA and the marketing research course at a university in which marketing students provide volunteer services supporting the research objectives of the local VITA program, which align with the course objectives. This paper provides the supporting theory, affirmative results, and pedagogical details to implement this experiential service-learning project, including adaptations during a pandemic and for similar course projects.

The Role of Instructor Due Diligence in Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA): Evidence From One University-Level Program

This paper reviews the tax preparation practice of one university-level Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program to determine the role, if any, due diligence requirements for paid preparers should have on student preparers. The due diligence requirements as outlined in Circular 230 apply to paid preparers. The Volunteer Standards of Conduct are outlined in IRS publication 4012 and apply to VITA volunteers who are often students. This study analyzes the tax challenges faced by student prepares in a VITA program, and how the increased due diligence standards required of the IRS for paid preparers would be beneficial to the students participating in a VITA program. The study models tax return data to show the financial benefit application of due diligence standards would have for the Internal Revenue Service. The goal of this paper is to show the importance of higher due diligence standards, and we contribute to the literature by providing the first review of VITA tax preparation through the lens of paid-preparer due diligence requirements.

Is There Learning in Service Learning? Measuring the Extent to Which VITA Participation Improves Student Technical Competence and Soft Skills

ABSTRACTStudents participate in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA) to improve both technical competence and soft skills. To date, research primarily assesses student perceptions about these outcomes. We empirically measure and test for changes in technical competence and soft skills at the beginning and end of VITA participation at one major midwestern university. Our results indicate first-time participants in VITA improve in technical competence, but students do not become better calibrated with respect to “knowing what they know” as a result of VITA participation. Importantly however, participants in the program improve in their soft skills. Further, both first-time and repeat participants improve their communication skills, although we do not find improvement in interpersonal relations or personal abilities for repeat participants. In sum, our empirical results indicate that the VITA program does deliver the hoped-for outcomes across a wide range of skills.

VITA: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature and an Analysis of the Program in Accounting Education in the U.S.

ABSTRACTThis paper provides a review of the literature on the role of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program in accounting education. The consensus is that the VITA program affords students an experiential learning opportunity to enhance their academic experience with real-life work exposure. However, there also seems to be a sense of underutilization of VITA as a service learning activity. Underlying that sentiment, somewhat, is the lack of an ongoing, constructive discourse on current practices. These observations provided us the impetus to develop and administer a cross-sectional survey investigating the structure of VITA programs in accounting education in the U.S. We utilize a non-sampling research design in that we reach out to the entire population of accounting programs in the U.S. The study includes an analysis of active VITA programs, an investigation into the demise of discontinued programs, and descriptive information on institutions that have never offered a program. Our goal is to energize VITA program activity in accounting education and promote future discussion and research about the program. We contribute to the literature by providing the first comprehensive literature review of VITA programs in accounting education coupled with a data-driven description of the current status of VITA.

Is Participation in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program Associated with Students' Problem-Solving Skills and Professional Commitment?

ABSTRACTThe Accounting Education Change Commission (AECC 1990, 309) states accounting students “should identify and solve unstructured problems that require the use of multiple information sources. Learning by doing should be emphasized.” The Pathways Commission (2012) also emphasizes the importance of exposing students to complex, real-world problems. Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) participation is an experiential learning opportunity with real-world problems and real clients in a professional setting. Using survey data obtained from students at seven U.S. universities, we test whether students who participate in VITA programs have greater professionalism as measured by problem-solving skills and professional commitment. Our results generally indicate participation in VITA programs is positively and significantly associated with problem-solving skills, but not with commitment to the profession. We do not find strong evidence that the association between VITA participation and problem solving differs significantly between traditional (age 25 and under) and nontraditional students (over age 25) or that the association differs significantly for students who intend to pursue tax careers and those who do not. Our study contributes to the extant literature on the effectiveness of experiential learning, to our understanding of attributes of professionalism in students, and to the specific benefits of the VITA program.

JANUARY 2014 PLACEMENT ADS

JANUARY 2014 PLACEMENT ADS

Development Of An Award Winning Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program: A Case Study

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, sponsored by the IRS, offers free tax services for individuals with low-to-moderate incomes, the elderly, disabled and/or those who lack English language proficiency. Although established by the IRS in 1969, it is administered by partnering community based volunteer organizations throughout U.S., like universities, schools, religious groups, credit unions or other non-profit organizations. Many VITA sites are sponsored and run by universities through their Accounting departments. The 2012 Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council Public Report indicated that in 2010 only 3% of qualifying tax returns were prepared at VITA sites, with 62% of qualifying returns being prepared by paid preparers (IRS, 2012, p.51). In addition, there are still a large number of individuals who fail to file returns at all often leaving potential tax refunds and credits unclaimed (Lim, DeJohn and Murray, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to share the best practices used at our university to create an award winning VITA program. The specific topics to be addressed are location, layout, operating hours, staffing & training, process, promotion, electronic filing, other services and things to avoid. These topics are not only what we believe to be the most important in running a successful VITA site but the American Taxation Association 2007 Best Practices Report lists these same topics as well (ATA, 2007). We will conclude the paper with a discussion of our plans for the future growth of the program.

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Programs and Taxpayer Actions to Improve Personal Finances

The income tax-filing process creates teachable moments for learning about taxes and other financial matters. Educators and volunteers from Penn State Cooperative Extension helped taxpayers file 2008 returns under Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA). Nearly 600 filers (588) completed and simultaneously received educational information about managing personal finances. This article describes the actions taxpayers took to improve their financial stability. Nearly half (48.8%) of the filers believed their understanding of taxes had increased a lot since having their taxes prepared by Penn State Cooperative Extension. Implications for Extension educators and program benefits for taxpayers and volunteers are suggested.

Paid in Full: Using the Earned Income Tax Credit and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program to Stimulate Financial Planning in Low-Income Communities

This paper will discuss the creation of a system-wide quality service agenda for tax preparation for low-income families, with the chief focus on the Earned Income Tax Credit (“EITC”). The EITC is an important anti-poverty measure for low-income families. Therefore its administration will have a significant impact on the financial security of these families. The EITC provides not only immediate anti-poverty relief but also capital for long-term asset planning. However, these benefits are only accessed through a complicated filing process. They often require access to sophisticated legal services that are beyond the economic reach of the intended beneficiaries. Legal services within the reach of low-income clients typically lack resources to meet the needs of their clients and lack the expertise to provide effective service. This paper proposes a model that enhances available services. This model improves the access that low-income families have to effective tax preparation and financial planning. This model supports the framework already provided by the IRS, the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program and local community development corporations. The ultimate purpose of the model is to empower low-income families to control their own wealth planning, gain financial savvy and meet the policy objectives of the EITC.

Service Learning: A Valuable Experience

In this paper, we describe how our department recently incorporated a major service learning component into the curriculum. Specifically, we employed participation in the IRSs Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program as an effective means of experiential and service learning for the past two years for Masters of Accountancy students. We designed a course devoted entirely to serving in a VITA program operated on a local Air Force base. Our experience confirms that service learning can be a powerful tool in teaching. It has enhanced our students academic and professional development. It has given significance to our mission and it has strengthened community relationships. However, recent developments have made it difficult for us to maintain this service learning project in its present form. It appears that we, like many other programs, must consider again how to implement service learning as part of our curriculum, but we will do so now with a greater appreciation and enthusiasm for its unique contributions to learning.

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program Dramatically Increases Knowledge Retention And Student Skills

In academia, faculty have the challenge of developing programs that will instill in the students the core competencies and skills defined by the accounting profession as the benchmark for successful entry into the accounting profession by college graduates. By integrating participation in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program with the teaching of concepts in the classroom at Utah Valley State College, faculty have been able to increase the retention of knowledge and the development of practical skills that benefit students, potential employers, and the community.