Tax season is over, and the results are in: 45 foster youth received $135,532 in tax refunds, thanks to an innovative partnership between John Burton Advocates for Youth, Santa Clara Social Services Agency and Bill Wilson Center.
The partnership was launched in response to a change in California state law that allows young adults, age 18 to 24, to claim the California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC). The CalEITC is the state’s largest anti-poverty program, directing $1 billion annually to low-income Californians. Before the 2020 tax year, young adults aged 18 to 24, were not eligible for the CalEITC unless they were custodial parents.
In the first year of this change, JBAY conducted a statewide public education campaign about the CalEITC for transition-age youth, reaching over 2,000 young people. We changed tactics for the 2021 tax year, choosing instead to work intensively with one jurisdiction: Santa Clara County in the Bay Area. This change paid off for young people.
JBAY kicked off the project by helping Santa Clara County establish a tax preparation clinic for transition-age foster youth. JBAY also developed youth-friendly materials to explain the process, including a tax preparation checklist, publication, and social media toolkit.
Santa Clara County did its part by requiring all county social workers to inform foster youth about the CalEITC and refer them to the newly developed tax preparation clinic. Community-based nonprofit Bill Wilson Center rounded out the team by operating the tax site, referring young people and ensuring that communications to youth were clear and relevant.
Foster youth felt supported and relieved when describing their experience. “In my case I had to do not only this year’s tax return but also the previous year! Even though I didn’t have all my documents together [the volunteer] continued to take the time with me. I’m so thankful for all of the help! If given the opportunity to go through all of this over again next year, I’d definitely want to go through the Hub!”
Together, this winning team helped 45 young people claim $135,532. Filing their income taxes opened the door to other critical forms of assistance, including federal pandemic relief payments. With an average annual income at age 21 of just $11,904, financial assistance like this makes a big difference for foster youth, particularly during the pandemic.
But our work isn’t over! Thanks to generous grants from Tipping Point and the Walter S. Johnson Foundation, JBAY will expand this targeted approach to the larger Bay Area and Northern California. Our goal is to help up to 5 counties replicate the great results achieved by Santa Clara County. To learn more about the project, visit JBAY’s website.