Accounting students from Notre Dame and Saint Mary's are providing free tax assistance for low-income taxpayers in the Michiana area again this spring.

Beginning this Saturday, more than 70 juniors and seniors will prepare thousands of federal and state income tax returns as part of the 31st annual Vivian Harrington Gray Tax Assistance Program.

Michiana residents who earn less than $35,000 annually or are unemployed are eligible for free assistance, said senior Melissa Rauch, the program's publicity director.

"We try to get them back some money they wouldn't normally get if they weren't familiar with the process," she said.

The students spent about 10 hours in the classroom intensely preparing for their volunteer work. They learned to fill out items on the federal income tax returns and studied certain credits and deductions for which their clients could be eligible, said Ken Milani, professor of accountancy and program coordinator.

For example, the earned income credit allows taxpayers to draw more out of the system than they actually contribute. The child credit also provides a refund for families with children under age 17, said Milani.

Senior Matt Dixon said he felt his involvement in the program benefitted the community.

"We're helping people save money on their taxes without paying for a tax preparer," he said. "They can get tax savings they wouldn't have known about otherwise. The earned income credit can save families up to $4,000."

The Vivian Harrington Gray Tax Assistance Program began in 1972 with the vision of a law student and an MBA candidate who were looking to help taxpayers get special refunds offered by the state of Indiana. They contacted Milani, who helped direct their efforts and instituted the preparatory courses in federal taxation and tax assistance.

The program has grown since then, filing over 2,500 tax returns last year and helping 1,430 local taxpayers.

"We try to get students at Notre Dame to be compassionate, concerned and committed. Here we add a fourth `C' — competent. We have the best trained volunteers in the country," Milani said.

The program is not unique to Notre Dame, according to Milani, but three factors do distinguish this program from those of other universities.

"First of all, we go into the neighborhoods where the taxpayers live," he said. This year, the program boasts two on-campus sites, one at Notre Dame and one at Saint Mary's, and nine off-campus locations. Most other schools limited their services to on-campus centers.

Secondly, local CPAs volunteer at five of the sites to help with more complicated refunds, another difference from most schools with similar programs.

The third unique factor is the Students Working at Taxes (SWAT) team, which will make appointments to go to homes and hospitals, according to Rauch.

"We make house calls, for people who cannot get to our locations due to age, disability or hospitalization," said Milani.

The tax assistance program benefits not only the recipients, but also the students, said Milani.

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