Expanded Child Tax Credit

There are too many families in Vermont and throughout this country, who are struggling to raise their kids.  In fact, shamefully, the United States has one of the highest rates of childhood poverty of any major country on earth.

That is why I am delighted to inform you that, as a result of the American Rescue Plan passed several months ago and signed into law by President Biden, historic action has been taken to make it easier for moms, dads, and caregivers to raise their children.  One of the key provisions of that legislation is a major expansion of the Child Tax Credit.

Starting July 15, roughly 39 million households, including 88% of children in the United States, will begin to automatically receive a monthly child tax credit payment.

Married couples making under $150,000 and single parents making less than $112,500 will receive a monthly payment of $300 per child under 6 and $250 per child between the ages of 6 and 17 for the next 6 months, with the rest of benefit to be received as part of next year’s tax return. 

For example, the average married couple making $75,000 with two children, a 3-year-old and an 8-year-old, will receive a total of $6,600 in the child tax credit, including 6 monthly payments of $550 and an additional $3,300 as part of their 2021 tax return. A single mother making $25,000 with a 2-year-old will receive a total of $3,600, including 6 monthly payments of $300 and an additional $1,800 as part of her 2021 tax return.

There is no question that this historic increase in the child tax credit is going to make a real difference in people’s lives. It is a major reason the American Rescue Plan is one of the most significant pieces of legislation passed for working people in the modern history of this country. In addition to an expansion of the Child Tax Credit, that legislation provided a $1,400 direct payment to all low and moderate income Americans, a significant improvement in unemployment compensation, nutrition, housing and education assistance,  and funding to help make sure as many Americans as possible were vaccinated. 

But let me be clear.  The American Rescue Plan was emergency legislation which provided an expansion of the Child Tax Credit for only one year.  That is not acceptable.  We must now either make this Child Tax Credit expansion permanent or, at least, extend it for a number of years. And that’s exactly what I’m fighting to do in the next budget bill.