Expanded Child Tax Credit cut poverty in half; restore it

It’s that time of year again, tax time. Not for everyone, mind you. The very rich will pour a ton of money into the pockets of “experts” who will find ways for the uber rich to pay nothing,

I am grateful that my legislators, Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell and Rep. Suzan DelBene supported the expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) to all low-income families in 2021. This straightforward tax bill cut child poverty in the U.S. nearly in half. Parents had the freedom to spend that credit as they saw fit.

It helped pay for childcare that would allow parents to go to work. It made the choice between paying bills and buying groceries unnecessary in many cases. Sadly, last year the Senate let the CTC expansion expire and now 19 million children in families that are struggling to make ends meet will receive a much smaller CTC, including 2 million who will get nothing. Meanwhile, families making $400,000 per year will get their full CTC. How does that make sense?

I’m reminded of the wise words of FDR: “The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”

Mary Minor

Monroe