There are just a few more weeks before tax season wraps up. And many low to moderate income North Carolina families are being reminded this is the last tax season they can claim the state Earned Income Tax Credit or EITC.
A new report by the North Carolina Justice Center says out of the states with an Earned Income Tax Credit, North Carolina is the only state to eliminate the credit in nearly 30 years.
According to the IRS, the Earned Income Tax Credit is "...a benefit for working people who have low to moderate income...It reduces the amount of tax you owe and may also give you a refund."
Cara Williams runs the Reinvestment Partners Taxpayer Assistance Center at Northgate Mall in Durham. She says about half of their clients qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit.
“And the clients that we serve, every dollar counts. So to lose $50 or to lose $500 is major to our clients," said Williams.
Williams says these are families that live paycheck to paycheck.
"So when you're looking at again, $50, $500 or $2,000. That is sometimes the biggest single payment people get all year and they use that money to make things work in their households," said Williams.
Numbers show nearly one million North Carolina families claim the state Earned Income Tax Credit each year.
The state EITC was established during the 2007 economic downturn.