Taxing Times

The newsletter of AccountAbility Minnesota Volume 28, December 2006

Mark Your Calendars Now for AAM to help metro taxpayers Claim It! the January 27th We need 120 volunteers to make the Claim It! Fair Claim It! Fair
As you start to make plans in the New Year, circle Saturday, January 27th as the official kick-off of the 2007 tax season for AccountAbility Minnesota (AAM). Greater Twin Cities United Ways Claim It! Earned Income Tax Credit initiative will be officially launched that day at the Minneapolis Convention Center. AAM and other Claim It! partners such as AARP and the Minnesota Department of Revenue, will have tax sites up and running. Greater Twin Cities United Way will be hosting the event and is busy recruiting support from local government and corporate leaders. Many of AAMs community partners and financial institutions will also be on hand to provide tax site customers with information about financial education and services available to help working families use their tax refunds to save and begin to build assets. We need 120 volunteers to make the Claim It! Fair a success, so please join us January 27th to kick-off the 2007 tax season. To volunteer at the Claim It! Fair or for more information, please contact Shari Reily 651-287-0187 ex. 116 sreily@ accountabilitymn.org a success, so please join us January 27th to kick-off the 2007 tax season.

Greater Twin Cities United Way partners with

he Greater Twin Cities United Way has created a partnership of corporations, local and state government, and nonprofit organizations to increase access to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Working Family Credit (WFC) in the Twin Cities nine county area. United Ways Claim It! campaign has the ambitious goal of increasing use of the EITC and WFC by 10,000 low-wage workers in 2007. AccountAbility Minnesota (AAM) is the lead agency providing free tax assistance to help low-wage workers claim the credits to help meet that goal. Thanks to United Way support, we will be expanding hours of operation at AAMs main Midway St. Paul site in an effort to double the number of taxpayers served in the metro area in 2006. The campaign will have great visibility with a wonderful kickoff at the Minneapolis Convention Center, including a grass roots marketing effort and major media campaign perhaps including billboards, nited Ways radio ads, bus signs, and community newspaper ads Claim It! campaign and articles. We are especially targeting low-wage has the ambitious goal of workers that traditionally dont claim the credits such increasing use of the EITC as Latino families, self-employed taxpayers, and and WFC by 10,000 lowlow-income individuals leaving public assistance. wage workers in 2007. The United Way has enlisted the support of hundreds of agencies, companies and community organizations to get the word out about this effort. We invite you to join the effort: volunteer; help promote free tax sites; invite us to speak to your colleagues, clients or any group that could benefit from tax service. If you have ideas or questions about the campaign call Bonnie Esposito directly at 651-287-0187 ex. 105.

AccountAbility Minnesota
2300 Myrtle, Suite 180 St. Paul, MN 55114 Phone: 651-287-0187 Fax: 651-287-0190 www.accountabilitymn.org Executive Director Bonnie Esposito besposito@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 105 Director of Taxpayer Services Carla Gainey cgainey@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext 104 Tax Program Manager Timothy Kenney tkenney@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 101 Express Refund Loan & Savings Program Coordinator Eva Song Margolis emargolis@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 102 Small Business Coordinator Tom Larson tlarson@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 118 Electronic Filing Coordinator Joan Kraupa jkraupa@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 107 Corporate Volunteer Director Kathleen Seestadt kseestadt@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 103 Director of Volunteer Resources Shari Reily sreily@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 116 Community Outreach Specialist Andys Sanchez asanchez@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 120 Customer Service Specialist Yer Lee ylee@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 100 Communication/Marketing Coordinator MikQuinlyn Speller mspeller@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 108 Greater MN Partnership Manager Acacia Rodine arodine@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 109 Development Coordinator Lisa Zellmer lzellmer@accountabilitymn.org 651-287-0187 ext. 106 St. Cloud Program Coordinator JeriAnne Collins 320- 251-1612

The Directors Corner

Bonnie Esposito, Executive Director
As we plan for our 35th anniversary celebration I have been thinking back on my time at AccountAbility Minnesota. I recently started my fifth year here and it is wonderful to see the changes and growth in the organization over these four years. When I started we were just three staff members and this tax season we will be fourteen, plus fifteen seasonal employees. We have expanded from two tax sites in Greater Minnesota to 20+ in 2007 and this last fiscal year we helped return $13.7 million dollars to over 10, 900 taxpayers. Of course, all this was possible thanks to our community partners and hundreds of volunteers. But the real stars of this growth have been the dedicated staff that has worked above and beyond the required hours to ensure every possible taxpayer was served, every volunteer trained, and the last electronic file sent to guarantee speedy refunds. I hope you will join us for our 35th anniversary celebration in the spring. We will have some time to reminisce about our beginnings and have some exciting new initiatives to announce plus it will just be a fun event to thank all our supporters and volunteers. Look for an invitation after the tax season.

ccountAbility Minnesota helped 10,915 low-income taxpayers receive $13.7 million in tax refunds last tax season.

AccountAbility Minnesota Is Kid Friendly, and You Can Help!

Donations of Gently Used Kid Stuff
Were very excited to have a new space to welcome customers for the 2007 tax season. Since well be offering expanded day-time hours at the main Midway St. Paul office, were planning to spruce up the waiting area and make it a little more kid-friendly for customers who need to bring children along. If you have any gently used childrens chairs, tables, toy bins, rugs, bookshelves, books or quiet toys, please contact Lisa Zellmer, AAMs Development Coordinator at 651-287-0187, ext. 106 or lzellmer@accountn 2006 5,154 abilitymn.org. children benefited from tax refunds.

Welcome Yer, MikQuinlyn and Andys!

We are happy to welcome three new staff members. Yer Lee is our Customer Service Specialist. Yer has extensive experience in customer service and is currently completing her degree in Communications at Metro State College. MikQuinlyn Speller is our Communications / Marketing Coordinator. MikQuinlyn has a graduate degree in design from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and is the current Marketing Director (volunteer) for the Minneapolis Urban League Young Professionals group. Andys Sanchez is our Outreach Specialist and will target our outreach to the Latino community. Andys is a graduate of Hamline Universitys Masters Program and is currently working on his second degree. He has experience in finance and working with international students through Hamline.

Taxing Times

Help Spread the Word about Claim It!

We need your help to double the number of AccountAbility Minnesota (AAM) volunteers for 2007. Your help is pivotal to AAMs ability to meet the challenge. Talk to your neighbors, members of your clubs or faith-based groups, fellow co-workers and family members about AAMs important work and its impact on the lives of low-income taxpayers. The Greater Twin Cities United Way Claim It! campaign in partnership with AAM will help a much larger number of taxpayers attain financial stability by claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit -- but this can only be done if we increase our volunteer staff for the 2007 tax season. So please dont be shy; tell folks you know about AAM and encourage them to become involved! Share AAMs story over the backyard fence, at the water cooler or over your next family holiday dinner. If you need ideas or materials to spread the word please contact Shari Reily, Director of Volunteer Resources, at sreily@accountabilitymn.org or 651-287-087 ext. 116. Kathleen Seestadt, Corporate Volunteer Director, will be happy to introduce AAM and the Claim It! partnership at your work place. Contact her at kseestadt@accountabilitymn.org or 651-287-0187 ext. 103. Research shows that people who volunteer are happier, healthier and even live longer! When you recruit someone to volunteer you are opening a door which leads to benefits for everyone involved and has a positive ripple effect which cant be beat.

AccountAbility Minnesota Board of Directors

President Debra Linder, Fredrikson & Byron, P.A. Vice President Beth Haney, Community Volunteer Treasurer Bruce Thiel, CBIZ Secretary Jodi Sandfort, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs Directors Amanda Guanzini, Deloitte & Touche, LLP Jeff Holland, Northwest Airlines Keith Jasch, Wells Fargo Tatiana Karasik, U.S. Bank Kim Pender, PricewaterhouseCoopers Jeff Severts, Best Buy Gary Steinhilber, KPMG, LLP Wesley Walker, Northway Community Trust

Guess Whos Turning 35? Help Celebrate AAMs 35th Anniversary!

AAM is now celebrating its 35th year of providing free tax and accounting assistance to low and moderate-income individuals and sole proprietors in the Twin Cities and across Greater Minnesota. In 1971, our taxpayer services programs were established with the belief that an individuals access to tax assistance and, by extension, important financial supports applied for through a tax return, should not depend solely on his or her ability to pay for such services. Help Us Celebrate By: Volunteering at a tax site to help make our 35th tax season the best ever Make a year-end financial contribution to support our work Join us post-tax season for our 35th anniversary celebration -- more details and a date to follow in AAMs next newsletter

On your mark, get set, go: 2007 Volunteer registration begins! Volunteers: You should receive your registration packet via e-mail or US Postal Service by December 15th; if you havent received it by then please contact Shari Reily at sreily@accountabilitymn.org or (651) 287-0187 ext. 116. We are looking forward to showing off our expanded space and were happy to report that all our volunteer training will be at our office on Myrtle Ave. See you in January!

Theres Still Time to Make a Financial Gift to AAM

AAM would like to thank its many financial supporters for their generous donations throughout the year. In 2006, our programs and partnerships continued to grow and we wouldnt be able to make this happen without your support. In recognition, we will publish a complete list of our financial supporters shortly after our fiscal year end in June. Individual Gifts -- If you are considering a financial gift to support AAM, theres still time before year-end. You will find a donation envelope enclosed for your convenience. Employer Matching Gifts If you have given volunteer time or made a financial contribution to AAM, please make sure you are taking advantage of any employer matching gift programs you or your spouse may be eligible for. Check out the list of employer matching gift programs on AAMs website and check with your employer about the specific matching requirements for their program. Questions: Call Lisa Zellmer, AAMs Development Coordinator, 651-287-0187, ext. 106.

Two Bits & More

-Sharing your story of volunteering with AAM is a great way to motivate others. Want to give your two bits worth? Submit an interesting story or observation to contact@accountabilitymn.org.

Taxing Times

AccountAbility Minnesota 2300 Myrtle Avenue, Suite 180 St. Paul, MN 55114 Address Service Requested

Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage Permit #26854 Minneapolis, MN

Paid

AAM Recognized for Leadership at NCTC Conference

On October 11, 2006 AAM was recognized for its leadership role on the steering committee of the National Community Tax Coalition (NCTC), a network of representatives from free tax preparation programs across the U.S. as well as key government and business partners. NCTC and its affiliates seek to improve the economic well being of low- and moderate-income individuals, families, and communities by building a movement to dramatically increase access to tax credits and asset-building opportunities. As a co-founder of NCTC and a steering committee member, AAM has played an integral role in shaping the activities and direction of the Coalition since its founding in 2001. Bonnie Esposito, AAMs Executive Director, accepted the award at NCTCs annual conference in Los Angeles.

Visit us on the web at www.accountabilitymn.org

Mission Statement
AccountAbility Minnesotas mission is to provide tax and accounting assistance to individuals and small businesses with limited means by leveraging volunteer resources. AccountAbility Minnesota is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Funding for our programs comes from foundations, corporations, individuals, accounting firms and government agencies.

Taxing Times