John,

The House has passed the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act out of committee and it now goes to the full House for a vote as soon as next week. Advocates insisted that no corporate tax breaks be passed without including Child Tax Credit (CTC) improvements to help families―and the expansion of the CTC for lower-income families is included. We strongly urge members of Congress to actively support moving the bipartisan tax package at the first opportunity so it can take effect this tax season.  

This bill would increase the Child Tax Credit for 80% of low-income families who do not currently receive the full credit. It would lift 400,000 children out of poverty in tax year 2023, rising to 500,000 above the poverty line in 2025.[1]

These improvements do not go as far as they should, and the organizations that make up the Coalition on Human Needs pledge to continue to advocate to expand the CTC further to help the very poorest children. But this bill, offering much needed income to about 16 million children in families struggling to meet basic needs, is a very important step that Congress must take.

Send a letter to Congress urging them to pass H.R. 7024 and expand the Child Tax Credit now.

A mother with two children earning $15,000 a year should not receive less help from the Child Tax Credit than a similar family earning $300,000 a year. Under current law, the family with $15,000 in earnings receives only $1,875, while the higher income family receives $4,000. If Congress passes the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, the $15,000-earning family would see their CTC rise to $3,600 for tax year 2023. By 2025, their benefit would equal that of the wealthier family.  

More than one in five children under the age of 17 will benefit in the first year of this legislation.[2] More than 1 in 3 Black and Latino children, and 3 in 10 American Indian/Alaska Native children will benefit from the bill because―due to centuries of racial and ethnic discrimination in employment and housing―their parents are more likely to be in low-income jobs.

Congress must invest in our children now. The future of our country depends on them.

Click here to send a direct message to Congress today to pass H.R. 7024 and invest in the most vulnerable children in our country.

Thank you for all you do,

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

[1] Reported Proposal to Expand Child Tax Credit Would Lift as Many as 400,000 Children Above the Poverty Line
[2] About 16 Million Children in Low-Income Families Would Gain in First Year of Bipartisan Child Tax Credit Expansion