The Census Bureau just released national poverty, income, and insurance data for 2023. It’s important to understand income and health insurance trends, but it’s especially important now since Congress will take up major tax legislation in 2025.
One thing we know for sure is that when the Child Tax Credit (CTC) was expanded in 2021, child poverty decreased by 46% overall, with Black and Hispanic/Latino child poverty falling by 6.3 percentage points in each community, impacting 716,000 Black children and 1.2 million Hispanic children. The new data shows that in 2023, the CTC lifted 2.4 million people above the federal poverty line―while important, falling far short of the 5.4 million lifted above the federal poverty line in 2021 by expanded monthly Child Tax Credit payments that included all children in low-income families.
Click here to send a direct message to Congress to expand the Child Tax Credit today.
Many people are facing food and housing insecurity, challenges with high child care costs, and dealing with other hardships that make it harder to make ends meet. Expanding the Child Tax Credit fixes a major flaw in current law: over 18 million children and their families are excluded from the full credit because their parents’ income is too low.
You read that right. Families where a parent can’t work due to illness or being laid off, cannot qualify for the Child Tax Credit at all. And many parents who work at low wages cannot get the full CTC. A single parent earning $15,000 a year and who has two children, will receive less than a family with a parent who has a higher paying job. This is a flaw that does nothing but exacerbate inequity and accelerate the racial wealth gap.
Instead of cutting investments in key programs and services, Congress must prioritize funding for human needs and that means passing an expanded Child Tax Credit that reaches the very poorest households.
Click here to send a direct message to Congress to expand the Child Tax Credit today.
Even if you can’t attend, you should register to get access to the webinar recording with captions, slides, and follow-up information.
Each year, the President is mandated by law to submit a proposed federal budget to Congress. The budget states the President’s priorities. For the Trump Administration, that means cuts to human needs programs and big Pentagon increases. This year, we expect the proposed budget will be released the week of March 11th.
The Coalition on Human Needs is hosting a webinar to tell you what you need to know about the Trump budget and the work ahead for better alternatives in Congress. One of the biggest issues: will Congress lift looming spending caps that will slash domestic programs by about 10 percent? We’ve already heard that the President wants to make deep cuts in domestic appropriations while dramatically increasing funds for the Pentagon. Advocates need to know how to prevent those cuts, how to fight against cuts to basic needs programs like Medicaid or SNAP, and how to advance real improvements in the services we need. On this webinar, you’ll find out more about the spending caps and how the President’s proposals will affect low- and moderate-income people through likely cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, housing, help for people with disabilities, education and job training, social services, and public health programs. And you’ll learn about opportunities to protect and expand human needs programs as Congress takes up the FY 2020 budget.
Sharon Parrott: Sharon is Senior Fellow and Senior Counselor at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. A preeminent expert on federal budget and anti-poverty policy, Sharon served for two years as Associate Director for the Education, Income Maintenance, and Labor (EIML) Division at the Office of Management and Budget within the Obama Administration.
Deborah Weinstein: Debbie is Executive Director of the Coalition on Human Needs. In her 16 years at CHN, she has focused on educating advocates about how to engage in critical federal budget choices on behalf of low-income people.
The webinar will be captioned. The webinar will also be recorded, and all registrants will get the recording link with captions, slides, and follow-up information.