WASHINGTON, DC –
Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11), a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, Congress’ chief tax writing committee, is proactively pushing to increase the Child Tax Credit to help working families keep up with inflation.
“As the new year begins and Americans are continuing to pay more for everyday goods and services, providing working families with tangible tax relief is my top priority”, Malliotakis noted in a press statement. “One of the ways we can address this is by expanding the Child Tax Credit, which was first introduced by a Republican Congress in 1997, and increasing and accelerating the amount that families can receive. Currently, the Child Tax Credit is $2,000 per qualifying dependent after being expanded through President Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. With inflation higher today than it was five years ago, it is appropriate to increase the Child Tax Credit. A 25% increase from $2,000 to $2,500 per child would go a long way in helping families put food on the table, roofs over their heads and pay for child care services”.
The Child Tax Credit was first established under the 1997 Taxpayer Relief Act, setting the tax credit at $400 per child younger than age 17. In 2012, the American Taxpayer Relief Act expanded the credit to $1,000 per child, which was then doubled to $2,000 under the Trump Administration’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The $2,000 credit from the TCJA is set to expire in 2025, and members of the W&M believe it should be increased for the remaining two years until reauthorized
According to Malliotakis, The Child Tax Credit has lifted millions of children out of poverty, allowing roughly 40 million American families to keep more of their hard- earned money.
According to a 2017 U.S. Department of the Treasury analysis, the average American household earning $75,000 saw a total tax reduction of $2,244 after the TCJA was implemented with an expanded Child Tax Credit.