VITA Committee
Taxpayer Advocacy Panel Members
March 2008

The VITA committee is comprised of 17 panel members who have varying degrees of volunteer experience with Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) Tax Preparation programs.  During the past year the committee gave input to the IRS relating to volunteer training, testing and certification, form development and other issues relevant to volunteer tax preparation.

IRS assists (VITA) volunteers by providing software, training, and equipment.  IRS writes the program direction for VITA and directs policy. For the first time this year, the IRS has been authorized to provide funding for VITA programs, as well as work with its partnerships to fund the sites. The focus for the VITA committee will be to:

• Continue to offer suggestions to improve training for all VITA volunteers, assist in the development of new products, and ensure the accuracy of testing materials for volunteer certifications.
• Help the IRS develop partnerships between tax professionals, commercial preparers and the VITA program to help taxpayers meet their tax responsibilities.
• Identify additional services that could be offered to targeted populations in addition to tax preparation and outside of the filing season