U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert reminded Washington residents at a press conference in Renton Wednesday that many of them may be eligible to electronically prepare and e-file their federal tax return online for free through the IRS Free File Alliance.

The Computer and Communications Industry Association hosted the event at Renton City Hall.

The program, called the Free File Alliance, is a public-private partnership between the IRS (www.freefile.irs.gov) and the electronic tax software industry that provides free online tax preparation to taxpayers with an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of $57,000 or less. That’s 70 percent of taxpayers or more than 95 million Americans.

Reichert emphasized the importance of the Earned Income Tax Credit.

“So many hard-working Washington individuals and families are experiencing the effects of the country’s economic struggles, so we’re trying to lift the burden they’re carrying through the Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC. We really want to spread the word as much as possible.”

Reichert also encouraged Washington taxpayers to electronically file their tax returns.

“E-filing is a benefit to taxpayers, but also to the state and to our local communities. It benefits taxpayers because they receive all the eligible deductions and credits, and they get their refund back quickly. It benefits the government by saving money, since it costs much more to process a paper return. And it benefits our local communities because when taxpayers receive their refunds, approximately 97 percent of that money is put right back into our communities,” he said.

The EITC is the largest poverty-reduction program in the nation. New for tax year 2009 are the additional EITC and income thresholds for a third qualifying child and changes to the uniform definition of a child.