Michigan 2-1-1

DHS Earned Income Tax Credit Demonstration Project Year Two

October – May, 2009

Michigan 2-1-1 connects people with information and resources to build healthy, safe communities

Get Help Give Help

About 2-1-1:

2-1-1 provides Information and Referrals 24/7/365 Calls typically last 3 – 5 minutes Our Information and Referral Specialists: – Help the callers

tell their story

, understand and prioritize their needs.

– Identify and offer them

appropriate resources

.

– Provide

advocacy

for those needing extra support to access services.

–

Follow up

on 100% of crisis calls, such as those for emergency shelter or housing assistance, and 10% of non-crisis calls.

I can’t pay my rent My child is on drugs We can’t help with that We don’t need volunteers I want to kill myself I’ll try to transfer you to an agency who can help I need to find childcare We only do senior daycare I don’t know about those resources I want to volunteer I don’t know, please hold .

We only know about domestic violence programs We don’t serve your area

I can’t pay my rent My child is on drugs I want to kill myself I need to find childcare I want to volunteer 2-1-1, how may I help you?

2-1-1

Yes, I can connect you with someone who can help… Drug Rehabilitation Center Volunteer Center Rental Assistance Program Child Care Resource And Referral Suicide Prevention Hotline

How Does 2-1-1 Work?

Problem Solving I & R Detailed Resources Advocacy / Empowerment

2-1-1 is:

• Free • Confidential • Professional • Multilingual • Available 24/7 Community Organizations Government Services Faith Based Services

2-1-1 Today and in the Future

Current coverage 2009 Projects Projects in process Workgroup forming

Michigan 2-1-1 Call Volume 2004 - 2008 800 000 700 000 600 000 500 000 400 000 300 000 200 000 122 586 100 000 214 620 275 011 382 760 546 119 0 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Earned Income Tax Credit Project 2-1-1 or toll-free access to free tax assistance preparation sites throughout Michigan 11,575 EITC referrals 345 free tax preparation sites in database (VITA, AAS, AARP, CAA & more) 87 Call Specialists trained to screen and identify callers that could be eligible for the EITC & CTC Publicizing EITC, pre-screening for eligibility, referring tax volunteers, collecting data

Tax Sites in 2-1-1 Databases 500 450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 2008 2009

Number of Tax Assistance Callers 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 2008 2009

3000 2000 1000 0

EITC Callers by Gender

8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 Male Female Did not disclose 2008 2009

Unmet needs* 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 * Unmet needs are recorded when a caller cannot be referred. Reasons for unmet needs range from a service being full or unavailable to having no transportation to access the service to being ineligible for the program.

2008 2009

Number of Tax Site Volunteer Inquiries 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 2008 2009

Added value - comprehensive service to callers 2-1-1 callers requesting financial assistance or help with basic needs were offered the opportunity to learn about the EITC Callers requesting information about EITC were assessed for referrals to additional community resources such as health care access, food, mortgage foreclosure assistance and any of the thousands of resources in 2-1-1 Call Center databases 2,852 EITC callers referred to asset building programs Trained 2-1-1 Call Specialists work with callers using creative problem-solving techniques to identify both short and long-term solutions

Potential EITC refunds captured by using 2-1-1 Based upon 2007 average EITC refund of $1,975

If just 80%

of 2-1-1 callers pre-screened and referred to free tax assistance sites completed filings, then: $18,288,500 in Federal EITC refunds would enter the Michigan economy

plus

$1,828,850 in Michigan EITC Compare to 2008 with $6,788,477 anticipated

Michigan 2-1-1 Call Centers

C.A.L.L. 2-1-1 Central Michigan 2-1-1 Gryphon Place 2-1-1 Hands On Battle Creek 2-1-1 Heart of West Michigan United Way’s 2-1-1 United Way for Southeastern Michigan’s 2-1-1 UPCAP 2-1-1

Coming soon: United Way 2-1-1: Midland Call Center

Questions??

Please contact: Sherry Miller, Director Michigan 2-1-1 Michigan Association of United Ways 517.371.4360 www.uwmich.org/2-1-1