This story was originally reported by The 19th.
Many lawmakers want to expand the $2,000-per-child credit, a longtime Democratic
priority — but aren’t sure about how to get there.
The push to expand the child tax credit is more bipartisan than ever — but a clear solution to stop it from being slashed in half is still far off.
Republicans and Democrats have been juggling proposals for the credit — currently a $2,000-per-child tax incentive — as Congress renegotiates the country’s tax structure. Lawmakers told The 19th they are anxious to pass something this year before the existing bill sunsets this fall and reverts the credit to a baseline $1,000.
“I hope not. We can’t afford to do that,” said Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican who has been promoting expanding the credit to encompass more of the working class.
For years, the left has dominated the conversation around the child tax credit, which is claimed by more than 46 million taxpayers each year. Now, some Republicans believe they have ground to gain on populist issues, given the low-income voters they credit for winning control of the White House and both chambers of Congress.
Republican Inconsistency Continues
Meanwhile, Democrats have been hammering their counterparts all year on what they view as Republicans’ hypocrisy in supporting an expanded credit as they give more tax cuts to billionaires at the expense of other social programs.
“Glad they have big proposals, but without them actually delivering it, it’s all talk. At the same time when they’re cutting SNAP benefits, does that make sense?” said California Rep. Jimmy Gomez, a Democrat who sits on the Ways and Means Committee, which handles tax legislation. “Let’s not try to be too cute by half, saying that you’re fighting for working families but you’re hurting them on some other policies.”
[Related: Moms to Trump — We want relief on child care costs]
During the pandemic, congressional Democrats and then-President Joe Biden temporarily increased the child tax credit to up to $3,600, expanded eligibility to more of the lowest-earning families and delivered monthly checks to recipients, rather than one lump sum. These changes lifted millions of households out of poverty. But the credit reverted back to $2,000 in 2022 — and child poverty rose soon after.
Last year, GOP senators and former Sen. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Independent who used to caucus with Democrats, rejected a tax package that would have moderately increased the credit, part of legislation that had already passed the House with bipartisan support.
Now that lawmakers are closer to passing a budget framework, Congress can soon turn its attention to negotiating border security, energy credits and tax priorities.
Some Republicans in both chambers are eager to expand the credit, including Senate Finance Chair Mike Crapo, an Idaho Republican. Current proposals range from Alabama Sen. Katie Britt’s idea to increase the similar Child and Dependent Care Credit to $4,000 to Hawley’s bill to increase the child tax credit to $5,000 and offset a parent’s payroll taxes.
“There’s real momentum behind it,” Hawley said. “The president wants to deliver tax relief to working people and he understands that we’ve got to put fresh tax relief for working people into this bill. It’s fine to renew the existing cuts, but that’s not going to do anything for working people.”
But this sentiment is still in the minority for the Republican Party, which is ideologically hesitant to spend more on increased credits. Trump and Vice President JD Vance said they wanted to expand it during the campaign, though they did not give details on paying for it. Expanding the child tax credit did not appear on the White House’s priority list earlier this year.
Democrats Present a Plan
Meanwhile, a group of Democratic senators laid out ambitious plans for an expanded credit on Wednesday. The American Family Act would create a tiered system for the child tax credit based on age: $6,360 for newborns, $4,320 for children age 1 to 6, and $3,600 for children age 6 to 17. It would also be fully refundable, meaning someone can access the credit even if they don’t earn enough to owe income tax.
“We’ve got a strong coalition, but tax policy [under] this administration seems to be so anathema to what we’re trying to do, to the things that we’re fighting for,” said New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, one of the bill’s sponsors. “I’m just very concerned. They want to give tax cuts to multi-millionaires, we want to give them to expecting moms. … There’s just different views on how we go about this and we’ll see what happens.”
[Related: Head Start is turning 60. The federal child care program may not make it to 61]
The House and Senate have been tied up in finalizing the year’s budget after GOP holdouts stalled negotiations, and meaningful conversations on the credit and other tax legislation have been mostly surface-level, members of both parties said this week. But that hasn’t stopped Republicans from messaging on the issue — and trying to preemptively push Democrats into a corner for not getting on board with their legislation in its entirety.
“REMINDER: If the 2017 Trump Tax Cuts are not extended, 40 MILLION families will see their Child Tax Credit cut in half,” the House GOP account posted on X Tuesday. “Passing the budget reconciliation bill would prevent the largest tax hike in American history.”
The reach tax credits have had for families is also shrinking. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and other high-profile lawmakers from past eras pressed current leadership earlier this month to expand and make permanent the current tax credit to keep up with inflation, adjusting it to at least $2,500.
Regardless, the Trump administration’s overall approach to economic issues has been unreliable, said Illinois Rep. Danny Davis, another Ways and Means Democrat. The “frenzy” makes it difficult to telegraph what’s next for the child tax credit and other tax priorities once the budget issues are settled, he added.
“Some of their notions, thoughts and ideas are awfully ridiculous and off-the-chart. But I do think they respond to pressure, and the pressure the American people are putting on them causes them to go back-and-forth,” Davis said. “That’s not the best way to run an airplane, that’s not the best way to run a government.”
[Related Grant Opportunity: Read all our recent grant listings.]
***
Marissa Martinez is a bilingual, Washington, D.C.-based reporter for The 19th* covering the economy, politics and policy. Previously, she reported for Apple News, Politico and the Texas Tribune.
The 19th is a nonprofit newsroom supported by a mix of membership, philanthropy and corporate underwriting. Our goal is long-term sustainability to support a lasting future for news and information at the intersection of gender, politics and policy.
