UNITED WAY OF THE BAY AREA

FREE TAX HELP (FORMERLY KNOWN AS EARN IT! KEEP IT! SAVE IT!): UWBA FREE TAX HELP PROGRAM PROVIDES HIGH-QUALITY FREE TAX PREPARATION IN OUR EIGHT COUNTIES. UWBA WORKS CLOSELY WITH INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE (IRS) AND LOCAL VOLUNTEER INCOME TAX ASSISTANCE (VITA) SITES. UWBA TYPICALLY HAS MORE THAN 100 TAX SITES MANAGED BY OUR COALITION LOCALLY. IN FISCAL YEAR 2025, MANY UWBA SITES WERE ABLE TO OPERATE WITH AN IN-PERSON COMPONENT AND SOME CONTINUED WITH A VIRTUAL OPTION THROUGH UWBA PARTNERSHIP WITH GETYOURREFUND.ORG. THIS YEAR, THE FREE TAX HELP COALITION PREPARED 36,169 HOUSEHOLDS' RETURNS AND HELPED THEM CLAIM OVER $52 MILLION IN REFUNDS. UWBA AIMS TO SERVE A SIMILAR OR HIGHER NUMBER FOR THE NEXT TAX SEASON. UWBA ASSISTS EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT (EITC)-ELIGIBLE FAMILIES IN CLAIMING LIFECHANGING TAX CREDITS BECAUSE THE EITC AND THE CHILD TAX CREDIT (CTC) ARE CRITICAL POVERTY-FIGHTING TOOLS. THE CREDITS ARE WELL RESEARCHED AND PROVEN TO BE THE MOST EFFECTIVE ANTI-POVERTY PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY. UWBA HAS ALSO BEEN ABLE TO KEEP NEARLY ALL UWBA SITES OPEN, ENGAGING 1,375 VOLUNTEERS.

SPARKPOINT: SPARKPOINT CENTERS WORK WITH FAMILIES TO MEET BASIC NEEDS, INCREASE INCOME, BUILD CREDIT, INCREASE SAVINGS, AND REDUCE DEBT THROUGH OFFERING BASIC NEEDS, CAREER, EDUCATIONAL, AND FINANCIAL SERVICES. SPARKPOINT PROVIDES FREE FINANCIAL COACHING TO WORK ONE-ON-ONE WITH CLIENTS BOTH VIRTUALLY AND IN PERSON TO RECOGNIZE BEHAVIORAL OUTCOMES, SET GOALS, BRAINSTORM STRATEGIES, AND DEVELOP REALISTIC ACTION PLANS TO MOVE PEOPLE TOWARD FINANCIAL PROSPERITY. SPARKPOINT CENTERS ALSO PROVIDE BASIC NEEDS SUPPORT, INCLUDING CONNECTING CLIENTS TO HOUSING AND FOOD RESOURCES AND BENEFITS SCREENING AND ADVOCACY. THROUGHOUT THE PANDEMIC, SPARKPOINT CENTERS MOVED TOWARD A HYBRID MODEL OF SERVICES TO MEET CLIENTS BOTH VIRTUALLY AND IN-PERSON TO BETTER SUPPORT ACCESS TO PUBLIC BENEFITS AND FINANCIAL COACHING SERVICES. IN FISCAL YEAR 2025, SPARKPOINT PROVIDED SERVICES TO 15,616 INDIVIDUALS THROUGHOUT THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA REGION THROUGH 12 SPARKPOINT CENTERS AND OVER 20 SERVICE LOCATIONS. MOST COMMUNITY MEMBERS SOUGHT OUT SPARKPOINT TO ACCESS SUPPORTIVE SERVICES RELATED TO FINANCIAL SERVICES AND GETTING HELP MEETING THEIR BASIC NEEDS. A TOTAL OF 2,521 PARTICIPATED IN FREE ONE-ON-ONE FINANCIAL COACHING SERVICES TO REACH THEIR FINANCIAL GOALS, AMONG WHOM 68% WERE ABLE TO MAKE PROGRESS TOWARD THEIR FINANCIAL GOALS AFTER ENROLLING IN SPARKPOINT, AND 1,156 ENROLLED IN PUBLIC BENEFITS.