What’s New
Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley has called for child tax credit to increase by 150 percent to a maximum of $5,000 per child, more than doubling the current limit.
Newsweek contacted Hawley’s office via email for comment outside of regular working hours.
Why It Matters
Enacted in 1997, child tax credit currently provides up to $2,000 per child to about 40 million families every year.
It has been praised for lifting millions of children out of poverty, and research shows that a temporary expansion during the coronavirus pandemic significantly reduced food insufficiency and helped families achieve basic needs. When it expired in 2022, 3.2 million American children fell below the poverty line.
What To Know
According to a report by Axios, Hawley has proposed several changes to child tax credit. Aside from the huge increase in tax refunds that could be accessed by families, the plan would enable families to receive tax credits in regular installments throughout the year instead of as a single lump sum during tax season. It would also eliminate the $2,500 minimum income required to access credit, while still maintaining the employment requirement.
Hawley also intends for it to apply to payroll taxes, which would permit Americans who do not make enough to pay income taxes with access to larger refunds.
“These are the people [who are] working class; people with families are who elected Donald Trump, and we need to deliver real and meaningful tax relief to them,” Hawley told Axios.
One estimate has found that increasing the credit to $5,000 per child would cost between $106 billion and $241 billion in 2025.
Despite the price tag attached to the plan, Hawley said the expansion would be “fantastic for the economy.”
His plan echoes previous calls by incoming Vice President JD Vance, who said during the 2024 presidential race that he would like “to see a child tax credit that’s $5,000 per child.” It has not been adopted as an official policy by the incoming Trump administration.
What People Are Saying
The idea has gained some traction on social media, with X, formerly Twitter, users offering their opinions.
X user DadMode: “They should make it $10,000 per kid for those married filing jointly. Incentivize stable homes with two parents. That’s the best thing you can do for a kid.”
What’s Next
Whether the plans will be popular with other lawmakers, particularly Republicans, remains to be seen—a previous bill which would have expanded child tax credit and allowed tax breaks for businesses was considered and voted down by Senate Republicans earlier in 2024.
The post Republican Touts Major Child Tax Credit Increase: What To Know appeared first on Newsweek.
