Newsman: House Democrats are working on legislation proposed by President Joe Biden to expand the existing child tax credit, directing the IRS to send recurring monthly payments to American families. In draft of the proposal, the IRS would deposit checks worth $300 every month per child younger than 6 and $250 every month per child age 6 to 17. This would give parents $3,000 per year for each child between the ages of 6 to 17, and $3,600 per child under age 6 as .The drafting of the proposed legislation was first reported by The Washington Post. Eligibility for the benefit, similar to the stimulus checks, would be based on family income for the prior tax year and be phased out at a certain income amount, the Post reported.
CNN reported, A source familiar with the matter confirmed them that the changes would last for a year, but lawmakers would then push to make them permanent, another Democratic aide said.
On Friday, President Joe Biden signed two executive orders Friday to address the economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic, including expanding food stamps and beginning the process to require that everyone working for the federal government get a minimum wage of $15 an hour.
“We’re in a national emergency. We need to act like we’re in a national emergency. So we’ve got to move with everything we got,” Biden said in a speech ahead of signing the orders.
“If we act now, our economy will be stronger in both the short and long run. That’s what economists both left, right and center are telling us.”
“The American people can’t afford to wait. So many are hanging on by a thread,” Biden said
The first order, which the White House called an “all-of-government” effort, asks the Agriculture Department to increase by 15 percent a Covid-19 food assistance program that provides nutritional assistance to families with children who would normally receive free or reduced-price lunches when schools were in regular sessions.
The order also expands the emergency increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, commonly known as food stamps, authorized by Congress to include those at the lowest income levels. That could provide a family with three children with more than $100 in extra benefits every two months, administration officials said.
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National Economic Council Director Brian Deese said the orders, which add to a slew Biden has already approved, are “not a substitute” for the massive $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief bill that Biden hopes Congress will pass, but rather a “critical lifeline” for millions of Americans who need assistance now.
Biden’s order also allows for workers who turn down employment out of concerns about health risks amid the pandemic to qualify for unemployment benefits.
“No one should have to choose between their livelihoods and their own health or the health of loved ones in the middle of a deadly pandemic,” Biden said.
Deese told reporters on Friday that he did not have an estimate as to how many federal workers and contractors are currently paid less than $15 an hour.
Biden has signed a number of executive orders since he took office Wednesday to swiftly roll back some Trump-era policies, as well as tackle the coronavirus.
Aides have said more executive actions are expected in the coming days and weeks.
Currently, 27 million children live in low-income families who receive a partial or no tax credit because they earn too little, according to the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.A one-year expansion would cost about $120 billion, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a non-partisan fiscal watchdog.
The President’s proposal also includes an expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit to more low-income workers, along with $1,400 stimulus checks, increased unemployment, nutrition and housing aid, among other measures.
