FRANKFORT, Ky. - Although Tax Day 2010 has come and gone, this year some Kentuckians are celebrating the benefits of filing on time, with larger refunds and no bill for tax preparation. The Kentucky Asset Success Initiative (KASI) reports having given assistance to almost 8,000 families at 57 locations, an increase of 30 percent over last year.
Site manager Christine Brasile says nearly $12.5 million was refunded to the state's working families.
"I think that as a result of the economy more people needed our services. I also think that with the expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit more people were eligible to claim it."
The KASI sites made sure that low-to-moderate-income taxpayers who qualified for the Earned Income Tax Credit claimed it on their returns, something many had not done before.
The EITC is the largest federal anti-poverty program benefiting lower-income working individuals and families. According to Brasile, the program this year helped taxpayers to avoid paying preparers, who often charge additional fees for each tax credit claimed or form filed.
"We had one man come to us who is a single working parent, and he had gone to a paid preparer. Because of complications, his return needed to be redone, and so we were able to save him nearly $400 by doing his tax return."
The Kentucky Asset Success Initiative is a coalition of agencies and organizations seeking to empower low-and-moderate-income Kentuckians, using a variety of asset-building strategies.
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Massachusetts unions and worker-owned cooperatives are joining forces to help tackle the state's historic wealth gap.
Census data show just a handful of households now have average incomes nearly 14 times larger than the bottom 20%.
Kevin O'Brien is a worker-owner with the unionized Worx Printing Cooperative in Worcester. He said workers increasingly want a say in workplace conditions, greater job security, and a piece of the profits.
"The more they know and understand about cooperative ownership," said O'Brien, "I think the sky is kind of the limit on what they'll be able to do, to combat this wealth gap."
O'Brien said there's great potential for more worker-owned co-ops, due to the impending "silver tsunami" of retiring small business owners - who will need to sell or transfer their assets.
He said the co-op model is already in place for businesses to replicate, while unions can help provide the resources co-ops need - including access to capital.
The number of worker-owned cooperatives in Massachusetts has tripled over the past decade.
About 40% of these co-ops have a majority of worker-owners of color, who may lack other means to build generational wealth.
Soren Rose is a worker-owner at Circus Cooperative Café in Cambridge.
He said he's proud to be part of a wider movement toward worker empowerment and café unionization, including the recently formed Blue Bottle Independent Union.
"We have so much in common with the struggles of our union comrades," said Rose, "and we like to share resources, and make sure that we're all joining in a broader fight for good working and living conditions, in the Boston area and Northeast as well."
Rose said some café customers come for the coffee - others to support the co-op model, too.
State lawmakers have created a new state agency to develop that model further and a nearly $8-million technical assistance fund of small grants to help.
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When the calendar flips to January, a number of states will increase their minimum wage levels - but just like recent years, North Dakota won't be among them. Those pushing for changes plan to try again.
North Dakota's minimum wage hasn't gone up in 15 years, standing firm at $7.25 an hour - also the federal level.
Meanwhile, many other states in this part of the country have gradually boosted theirs above $10.
State Rep. LaurieBeth Hager - D-Fargo - said she made this a big priority while serving in North Dakota's Legislature.
She echoed what some in the research community have noted, about giving low-income populations the power to lift themselves out of poverty.
"If people are making more, and have more buying potential, more earning potential," said Hager, "their whole life and their whole dreams can be entirely different."
And while researchers say these moves might not lead to big job losses, there are lingering concerns about employers turning to automation.
Hager said she doesn't have a firm number for a forthcoming bill this session, but she said she plans to keep it around $9 to make it easier for small businesses to absorb.
Republicans still control both chambers, and Hager said she plans to seek approval in placing the issue before voters - as opposed to a simple Legislative vote like last session.
Citizen-led ballot questions also are options and have worked in other conservative-led states - but Hager said that can be a thorny issue in North Dakota, even if voters say yes.
Meanwhile, Landis Larson - president of the North Dakota AFL-CIO - said skeptics might argue about costs being passed along to consumers or other drawbacks.
But he added that not making adjustments for low-wage earners can be felt in other ways.
"You know, if you look at it another way," said Larson, "most of those people are on some kind of government programs that actually everyone pays for in the long run."
A 2021 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that millions of American adults earning low wages rely on federal programs, like Medicaid, to meet basic needs.
Nationwide, more than 20 states and nearly 40 cities will increase their minimum wage rates when the new year begins.
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Many households across Arkansas are just above the federal poverty line, but earn less than they need to cover their basic needs.
These people, like Aida Borrero of Little Rock, are known to be a part of an ALICE household.
ALICE stands for asset limited, income constrained, employed - and describes the unique socio-economic status of workers and households.
Earlier this year, Borrero got treatment for colon cancer. She said because of that, and the rising cost of goods, her family has struggled to get by.
Borrero said they were living off her husband's salary while she recuperated. That was before he was diagnosed with the same cancer.
"My husband is limited to the work he can do," said Borrero. "He's currently working two days out of the week due to his various medical conditions, and I'm not currently working because of my own health conditions. What I get from Social Security isn't a lot. I can help, but it really isn't sufficient."
Between 2021 and 2022, the 'ALICE household survival budget' for a single adult in Arkansas increased from almost $24,000 to approximately $25,000 a year.
That is well above the federal poverty line of about $13,500 a year. Advocates want change.
In 2023, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green signed legislation to extend family tax credits to offer more assistance to ALICE families.
Borrero, who is Latina, said other communities of color also endure higher financial hardships.
In 2022, 51% of Hispanic households were below the ALICE threshold - compared to 43% of White and 33% of Asian households, according to United For ALICE.
The grassroots organization says systemic racism, discrimination, and geographic barriers can limit a family's financial stability.
Borrero said she wants policy makers to know households like hers have to make tough choices with risky trade offs.
"The economy is inflated," said Borrero. "One buys food at the grocery store, and many don't buy the healthy foods they want because they can't afford to buy healthy - because it is too expensive."
Like in all states, the cost of living varies across Arkansas.
ALICE budgets are determined at the county level. These budgets include housing, child care, food, transportation, health care, technology and taxes.
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