IRS changes help hurricane victims access the earned income tax credit.(Internal Revenue Service)

Nation's Cities Weekly, January, 2006 by Goldberg, Heidi

The new year brings with it the beginning of a new tax season. This is a key time for municipal officials to think about how they can help low- and moderate-income residents claim the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and subsequently bring federal dollars back into their communities.

However, this year there are also new tax filing challenges as a result of hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

To mitigate these challenges, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has recently made some important changes to help those affected by the storms have access to their EITC refunds, even if they have lost important tax records. A new guide is available on the IRS website, "Disaster Relief Guide," which details the recent changes.

The guide was designed to assist IRS...

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