United Way of Central Iowa filed 3,517 tax returns for lower-income Central Iowans as a part of it’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, a 22 percent increase from 2011.

The program’s 170 volunteers helped return $5.7 million to local taxpayers through tax refunds, child care credits and $1.8 million in earned income tax credits (EITC).

The average refund was $1,623 per return, for taxpayers whose average income is under $19,000 per year. United Way organized and operated eight VITA sites across Central Iowa.

Each site was staffed by IRS trained-and-certified tax preparers who completed and filed returns free of charge for workers who earned less than $50,000 in 2011.