Dear members of the committee, Thank you for your consideration of HB1454, and thank you to the patron for introducing the bill. I am an alumna of the Virginia Housing Alliance's AmeriCorps VISTA cohort (2024-2025), and I am eligible for the Segal Education Award in the amount of $7,395. Other alumni have warned me of using my education award in one sum because of the tax implications; since the award is currently taxed as income, alumni must pay back hundreds of dollars in federal and state taxes upon utilizing their award, often while enrolled in graduate programs and not generating any additional income. The classification of the award as income can also push some recipients into a higher tax bracket when they are in fact earning a low income and do not even have full discretion over the award's use (AmeriCorps holds the award and wires the funds directly to federally-approved educational programs). I applaud the bill's apparent recognition of the Segal award for what it is in practice: a gifted educational contribution awarded upon completion of a year or more of public service. I would also like to note that as an AmeriCorps VISTA, my stipend for the year was calculated at 110% of the local poverty level, and I earned below Virginia's minimum wage (roughly $11/hour). AmeriCorps members dedicate full-time work hours for minimal compensation out of a passion for service to their communities. HB1454 will help acknowledge AmeriCorps members for their service, and demonstrate the Commonwealth's appreciation of their work. While state income taxes on the Segal award are relatively minimal from a fiscal perspective, the symbolic recognition of AmeriCorps members' contribution is significant. I urge you to vote "yes" on this bill, and thank you again to the patron for bringing it forward!

Honorable House Delegates, I am Chair of the Arlington County Board. I write in my individual capacity. I write as an AmeriCorps alum. I taught through Teach for America in Houston from 1995 to 1997. The experience has helped define the issues I have spent my life working on. Since then, AmeriCorps has been a program I have seen through work at Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together. Ms. Bulova's bill is a small investment in the collective service that we all need. Allowing the AmeriCorps awards to be forgiven is particularly key at a time when service is being critiqued unfairly by this Administration, which contravenes the long bipartisan history of AmeriCorps. Virginia should respond with policy that Ms. Bulova is championing through this legislation. I used my AmeriCorps awards to go to the LBJ School and University of Texas Law School. I know put both those degrees to us serving Arlington, with a focus on the 22k Arlington residents who are below the poverty line, while also working to deliver services for all of our residents. Please support Ms. Bulova's bill. It's good policy that comes at a time when the policy is particularly needed. Matt de Ferranti Chair, Arlington County Board mdeferranti@Arlingtonva.us

Good afternoon Honorable Members of the Virginia House of Delegates, Thank you for your public service to Virginians and for serving on the very important Finance Committee. I am writing today to ask that you please support HB1454, which would remove the state tax on the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award. I serve on the Board of a nonprofit in Arlington (Aspire Afterschool Learning) that formerly depended on AmeriCorp volunteers to support closing the equity gap for our low-income students. Having had the opportunity to work directly with AmeriCorp volunteers and hear their stories, I know their commitment to seeking a pathway to success through education and workforce training, in spite, for many of them, financial barriers to more traditional paths. As a person who grew up low-income, I also know first-hand that seeking higher education or work-force training is significantly difficult without financial means. Programs like AmeriCorp provide hope and a possible pathway to workforce training and higher education. Many low-income young adults seeking a higher education or quality work-force training programs, are often the first in their families to do so, adding additional barriers to their journey. For example, they may not have strong financial literacy barring them from fully understanding tax consequences and the financial intricacies in navigating anticipated tax debt. Our society does not do a great job in providing this education either. Programs like AmeriCorp, where Virginians commit to volunteer service with organizations that support our communities, should not create additional burdens to participants, especially those intentionally giving back to our great Commonwealth. I ask you once again to please support HB1454 and remove this tax burden from the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award. Thank you for your important consideration to this matter. Best regards, Tannia Talento Former School Board Member for Arlington Public Schools Arlington Community Leader and Advocate

Good afternoon, My name is Xenia Rivas, and I am a former AmeriCorps member, having served from 2023 to 2025 with the nonprofit organization Edu-Futuro. I joined AmeriCorps because I have a deep commitment to serving my community, particularly in the field of education. As a first-generation college student, I personally experienced how challenging it can be to navigate the college preparation and application process without guidance. My parents wanted to support me but did not have the knowledge or resources to help. I often felt overwhelmed and hopeless, and that experience motivated me to ensure other students would not have to face the same barriers alone. Through my service, I was able to support high school students as they prepared for college and help them navigate a system that can be especially difficult for first-generation families. While serving as an AmeriCorps member, I also relied on the stipend to help manage my financial responsibilities as a college student, including repaying student loans. I entered service knowing that the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award would be a critical resource in reducing my student loan debt and making long-term financial stability more achievable. However, because the Segal Education Award is taxed as income, the amount I ultimately received was significantly reduced. This tax burden limited my ability to make a meaningful payment toward my student loans, undermining the intended purpose of the award—to support education and reduce financial hardship for those who commit to national service. For this reason, I am requesting support for HB 1454, which would make the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award tax-exempt. Passing this legislation would allow service members like myself to apply the full value of the award toward education expenses or student loan repayment, making national service more financially sustainable and accessible. I strongly believe that those who dedicate their time and energy to serving their communities should not be penalized financially for doing so. Supporting HB 1454 would be a meaningful step toward honoring and strengthening the impact of AmeriCorps service members. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Xenia Rivas

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I am Dr. Marjorie Myers, President of theBoard of Directors for Edu-Futuro, a non-profit organization that provides free after-school and educational support for youth and adults across four Virginia school districts, Arlington, Prince Wm, Fairfax and Alexandria City Counties. Each year we serve 5,000 children, youth and adults. Our 21 AmeriCorp members are essential to our work - they significantly expand our capacity and allow us to reach more students and families every year. I wish to support Delegate Gretchen Bulova's House Bill 1454 which would eliminate the unintended state tax on the AmericCorps Segal Education Award. The Segal Ed Award is used for tuition and fees, certification programs and student loan repayment. Taxing this benefit places an unnecessary burden on individuals who have committed a year of service to our communities. Please support and vote for HB 1454 to eliminate the state tax on the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award and ensure that AmeriCorps members receive the full benefit they earned through their service. Thank you for your time and consideration ... Dr. Marjorie L Myers

I am Dr. Marjorie Myers, President of theBoard of Directors for Edu-Futuro, a non-profit organization that provides free after-school and educational support for youth and adults across four Virginia school districts, Arlington, Prince Wm, Fairfax and Alexandria City Counties. Each year we serve 5,000 children, youth and adults. Our 21 AmeriCorp members are essential to our work - they significantly expand our capacity and allow us to reach more students and families every year. I wish to support Delegate Gretchen Bulova's House Bill 1454 which would eliminate the unintended state tax on the AmericCorps Segal Education Award. The Segal Ed Award is used for tuition and fees, certification programs and student loan repayment. Taxing this benefit places an unnecessary burden on individuals who have committed a year of service to our communities. Please support and vote for HB 1454 to eliminate the state tax on the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award and ensure that AmeriCorps members receive the full benefit they earned through their service. Thank you for your time and consideration ... Dr. Marjorie L Myers

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I'm writing to support removing the unintended tax on our kids who complete national service. Aspire Afterschool Learning was proud to provide service opportunities to 15 - 20 young people from our community for 14 years. These young people provide a valuable and essential service that makes our community a better and strong place, while committing to a year of service where they make far below the livable wage. Aspire routinely saw 50% of AmeriCorps members return for a second year, not because of the pay, but because of their commitment to provide educational mentorship to young people who would not otherwise be able to attend or afford academic afterschool programs. Taking these young people does a disservice to them, the communities we serve, and all of us. Thank you for your consideration. Paula Fynboh CEO, Aspire Afterschool Learning

Good Afternoon, My name is MaryKate Weaver, and I am AmeriCorps alum who was impacted my the financial tax penalty that comes along with the education award, and I would like to tell you about my experience with it and how it impacted my life. I served for two years in AmeriCorps, in 2009-2010 and again in 2011-12. My first year I served with National Civilian Community Corps in the southwest region, based in Denver. The second year I served with State and National, in Petersburg, Virginia. AmeriCorps was a life changing experience. I served in communities all over the country/ I learned how to lead volunteers, I saw people in need and I saw the people who helped them. The men and women I served with were a diverse crowd, some recent college graduates like myself, and many recent high school graduates who couldn’t afford college yet but saw a path towards it through the education award program. Everyone joined for a different reason, but we all had one thing in common- a drive to work with and for a country we loved, giving back or maybe paying it forward. We served with FEMA in hurricane relief efforts, habitat for humanity in both Colorado and Alabama, and in the impoverished neighborhoods of Petersburg. After my years of service ended, I knew I wanted to continue to serve my community and decided to pursue my masters degree in landscape architecture, a career that combines environmental and social justice work, coastal resilience efforts, and conservation. Because I served two terms of service, I was eligible to receive two education awards, which roughly came to about $12,000. 12,000. I claimed my awards shortly after I graduated from my program. I was living and working in Chicago in my first professional job as a landscape designer. It was 2015, and my salary was $50,000. I was excited to use my award to pay off a big chunk of my student loans all at once, but a few months later I filed my taxes. I got hit with a bill of around $2,400. My take home pay was about $750 per paycheck. It took me over a year to pay it off. AmeriCorps offers a path forward for many people who want to serve their communities and are interested in higher education that may not be able to pursue it otherwise. The education award should not contain a financial penalty that hits people who are just starting out, many in careers in non profit work or other service based careers. Please fix this. You have also chosen a career in public service, you have also chosen a career path to make a difference in the lives of your constituents. Here is a chance to change the lives of many people for the better. Please, please take it. Thank you sincerely for your consideration. MaryKate Weaver AmeriCorps NCCC Class of ‘10 AmeriCorps State and National Class of ‘12

As an AmeriCorps alumna, board member of the Virginia Service Foundation, and a Virginia taxpayer, I write in strong support of the HB1454, which would subtract the AmeriCorps education award from taxable income. After I graduated from Virginia Tech in 2008, I felt called to serve as a full-time AmeriCorps volunteer working in an underserved middle school in Providence, RI. When I completed my term, I earned the modest education award Congress apportions to AmeriCorps alumni. That award was no windfall; it totaled less than $10,000 for two years of service. Still, the award represented not just financial assistance, but recognition that service has value, and that our country is better when people devote their time and talents to the public good. Despite its modest amount, the award was impactful for me, and I was able to apply it toward my law degree at the University of Richmond. Yet when I used my education award for law school, it was treated as taxable income by Virginia. As a practical matter, this meant that while I was incurring substantial educational debt and had limited income, I faced an additional tax burden for funds that I used exclusively for education and for all intents and purposes never directly received. That tax bill was manageable for me in the long run, but it was a strain at the time, and it is far more burdensome for many AmeriCorps alumni whose financial margins are thinner. Most AmeriCorps members are young adults who make real financial tradeoffs for service, often coming from the very communities in which they serve. My perspective has deepened through my service on the board of the Virginia Service Foundation, which has allowed me to stay close to the work AmeriCorps members are doing across the Commonwealth today. Members tutor students, support disaster recovery, address food insecurity, strengthen capacity in communities that too often go without sustained investment, and much more. They are not volunteers in the casual sense: they commit to full-time service for little pay because they want to contribute to something larger than themselves. For many, the education award is a significant reason they can say yes to service, especially first generation students and those from rural or underserved communities. Taxing the education award undercuts its purpose. It turns a benefit designed to reduce barriers into a source of uncertainty and financial strain. Subtracting the award from Virginia taxable income would meaningfully improve this equation; it would allow members to use the award fully for education, as intended, without fear of an unexpected tax bill. And it would send the important message that the Commonwealth values national service and understands the practical realities facing those who serve. The fiscal impact of the exemption is modest, especially when weighed against the benefits AmeriCorps members deliver to Virginia communities every day. Stronger recruitment and retention mean more stable programs, better outcomes, and greater return on Virginia and federal investments. From both a policy and a human perspective, this is a sensible and fair adjustment. This legislation is a straightforward way to align our tax policy with our values and to ensure that those who give a year or more of their lives to serving the Commonwealth are supported, not penalized, for doing so. For these reasons, I respectfully urge adoption of HB1454. Respectfully submitted, Margaret (Maggie) Bowman

My name is Nathalia Villarroel, I previously served as an AmeriCorps to the nonprofit Edu-Futuro from 2024-2025. I joined AmeriCorps because I wanted to help my community, more specifically, I wanted to help other first-generation kids reach their full potential in school and prepare for college. I joined as a full-time graduate student, taking out federal loans to afford school. Through saving up my AmeriCorps checks and my promised full-time Segal award, I was hopeful that I would be fine. My experience as an AmeriCorps was invaluable, the impact I and my fellow other AmeriCorps was noticeable in the community. However, us AmeriCorps were disillusioned by the final amount of our Segal Education Award at the end of our service. I would recommend AmeriCorps to any young person looking to make a real impact. However, I cannot eagerly talk about the education award knowing that the tax deduction leaves the award less appealing as it presents to students and others holding to advance their education. I urge you all to support HB 1454, to exempt the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award from state tax.

My name is Joel Morgan. For nearly 3 years. I was the executive Director of the America program, RecoveryCorps in Virginia. I saw the incredible impact that these citizens doing national service had on those in recovery and on those in their community. I am writing in support of not taxing the benefits that these AmeriCorps members doing national service receive. Congress never intended for people who are doing national service to be taxed and for years have been trying to fix this issue. Let’s have Virginia lead the way. We need more people serving their neighbors and doing national service in this way and I believe that this will encourage that service and take burdens off of those who choose to do it. For most of the members who chose to serve with Recovery Corps, this opportunity gave them the chance to lift themselves up, receive professional training and experience, and finally move into paid employment. These programs are a great investment in the future of our Commonwealth and of our nation. I encourage you again to pass this bill.

Dear Committee Member, I’m writing in strong support of HB1454, legislation that would remove the tax burden placed on the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award. As a former AmeriCorps member, I know firsthand how transformative national service can be, both for the communities served and for those who choose to serve. I also know how discouraging it can be to receive an education award that is taxed as income, limiting its usefulness and creating an unexpected financial burden for people who have already committed to serving at modest stipends. My AmeriCorps experience was deeply meaningful and directly shaped my professional and academic path. Through service, I worked closely with students and saw the barriers many face in accessing and completing higher education. That experience inspired me to continue serving students beyond AmeriCorps and to pursue educational policy with a focus on higher education. I chose this path because I believe education is one of the most powerful tools for equity and opportunity. The Segal Education Award is intended to make education more accessible for individuals who dedicate a year or more to public service. However, taxing the award undermines that purpose. For many AmeriCorps members who are often recent graduates, first-generation students, or individuals from low-income backgrounds, the tax liability can be significant. Instead of being able to fully invest the award in tuition, books, or student loan repayment, members must plan for an additional financial cost that may arise months or even years later. Removing the tax on the Segal Education Award would allow members like me to use the award as it was intended: to further our education and continue contributing to the public good without fear of future financial strain. HB1454 recognizes the value of service and sends a clear message that those who dedicate their time and energy to strengthening communities should be supported, not penalized. By passing HB1454, the legislature would be making a meaningful investment in service members, higher education access, and the long-term benefits that come from encouraging civic engagement and public service. I urge you to support this bill and help ensure that the Segal Education Award truly serves as a pathway, not a barrier to educational and professional advancement. Thank you for your time and consideration.

I support consideration and passage of HB 1454 to remove the unintended tax on AmeriCorps members in Virginia who have earned a Segal Education Award. AmeriCorps is a proven national service model that addresses critical community needs and promotes workforce development. The unintended tax burden on AmeriCorps members is not the reward Congress intended. This tax particularly harms first- generation college students and members of lower-income families who may delay or abandon their education plans following volunteer service - especially Opportunity Youth (young people ages 16–24 who are disconnected from school and work) for whom AmeriCorps is often a primary pathway into education and workforce pipelines that help retain and grow Virginia’s future talent. Removing the state tax burden will increase the likelihood that alumni will spend Segal Education Award money in Virginia, including funds that are currently going unclaimed or are being used in other states that do not impose a tax.

On behalf of the Virginia Service Foundation, I am pleased to offer strong support for HB 1454, which would remove the unintended state tax on the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award. For 8 years, I served on the Governor’s Advisory Board on Service & Volunteerism (GAB), including 2 years as chair, and I now chair the Virginia Service Foundation (VSF). The GAB and VSF support the work of Serve Virginia, our state commission that administers our AmeriCorps programs and fosters volunteerism in the Commonwealth. In 2021, Delegate Dan Helmer introduced House Joint Resolution No. 543, requesting the Virginia Department of Social Services to study ways to increase participation in national service programs such as AmeriCorps. In 2024, Serve Virginia and the Virginia Service Foundation produced a report titled "Advancing Virginia’s Workforce through AmeriCorps." One recommendation is to exempt the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award from state taxes. What distinguishes this bill for your support? A tax bill for national service is not the reward Congress intended. In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed PL. 103-82, the National and Community Service Trust Act of 1993, which created AmeriCorps and the Corporation for National and Community Service. The Act provided AmeriCorps participants with a living stipend and other benefits during their term of service. At the conclusion of their service, eligible participants receive an education award, known since 2006 as the Segal Education Award, which can be used for tuition and fees, certification programs, and student loan payments. Congress intended the Segal Education Award to benefit AmeriCorps alumni in a manner comparable to the GI Bill: a tax-free education award following a term of service. In fact, the conference report 103-219 “Provides that awards shall not be considered: (1) in a means-test for Federal or federally-assisted benefits; or (2) as taxable income under the Internal Revenue Code.” It is unclear what happened, but the Act itself did not specifically exempt the Segal Education Award, and the IRS determined that it was taxable. Since the mid-2000s, every Congress has seen a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators and Representatives introduce legislation to exempt the Segal Education Award from taxation. Congressman John Lewis led this effort for over 10 years; former Congressman Jim Moran, who voted for the 1993 Act, frequently cosponsored. A diverse group of organizations, including veterans, supports these bills. The unintended tax on the Segal Education Award impedes individuals and organizations from fully participating in national service and leveraging AmeriCorps’s potential. It significantly affects emerging adults who completed their service between the ages of 19 and 24. This tax particularly harms first-generation college students and members of lower-income families who may delay or abandon their education plans. Virginia must remain competitive with other states for talent and leadership and not wait for Congress to fix the unintended tax burden. Other states are not waiting for Congressional action. Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oregon, Wisconsin, Maine, and Colorado have all made the Segal Education Award tax-exempt. For more detailed information, please review the attached one-pagers. Thank you for your consideration.

Members of the Virginia General Assembly, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to comment. I am a former AmeriCorps Volunteer and AmeriCorps Team Leader who served youth, families, and communities from 2014-2016 in central Florida. During my service, I provided academic interventions for students, supported families with accessing critical supports through 211, and helped students complete the FAFSA to transition from high school to college. It was one of the most transformative experiences of my career, and helped me become the leader I am today. With the help of the AmeriCorps education award, I was able to attend graduate school, completing dual degrees in social work and public administration and graduating debt free, another life changing experience. HB1454 asks that the education award be excluded from state income tax for AmeriCorps Alumni. This legislation would have a critical impact on volunteers who have spent hundreds of hours providing services and supports to communities, and who have wholeheartedly earned that award. HB1454 is another opportunity to reinforce the value that AmeriCorps service brings to the Commonwealth, and eliminate the financial burden from the taxation of the award for Alumni. We hope that you consider these important implications, and we appreciate your attention to this issue.