News Round-Up: January 29, 2018
Here are some highlights from the past week’s news on family tax credit issues.
Top Story: A number of Republican lawmakers across the country have recently introduced legislation to enact new state-level tax credits for working families and improve existing credits:
- Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker (R) proposed expanding the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from 23 to 30 percent of the federal credit as part of his budget plan. (Greenfield Recorder)
- Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R) introduced legislation to enact a new state-level Child Tax Credit (CTC) and create an EITC Partial Payment Pilot Program to allow eligible taxpayers to receive the state-level credit in advance monthly payments. (Wisconsin State Journal, Duluth News Tribune)
- Missouri Senator Caleb Rowden (R) presented legislation to create a state-level EITC worth 20 percent of the federal credit at the state’s Senate Ways and Means committee hearing Tuesday. (Missourian)
- Utah Representative John Westwood (R) introduced legislation to create a state-level EITC worth 10 percent of the federal credit. (The Salt Lake Tribune)
- As we reported last week, Maine House Republican leader Ken Fredette introduced legislation to create a state-level CTC and double the state’s EITC to 10 percent of the federal credit. ( News and World Report, Portland Press Herald)
Happening Around the Country
- The Oklahoma Policy Institute urged lawmakers to restore refundability to the state’s EITC and increase the size of the credit. Oklahoma’s EITC was made nonrefundable in 2016. (Oklahoma Policy Institute)
- On Friday, TCWF joined thousands of other organizations, policymakers, taxpayers and advocates to celebrate EITC Awareness Day.
- We blogged about the top 10 reasons why we love the EITC. (TCWF)
- The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP)’s Get It Back Campaign released a new animated video to help explain EITC eligibility requirements. (CBPP)
- Prosperity Now’s Taxpayer Opportunity Network released a toolkit of resources for raising EITC awareness and sharing the credit’s impact at the state and local levels. (Prosperity Now)
- We blogged about why states looking for ways to shield their residents from tax hikes brought on by federal tax reform may want to consider state-level credits for working families. (TCWF)
- On February 1, join Prosperity Now and TCWF on Capitol Hill to discuss how policymakers and advocates can work together to protect the EITC and other policies that help working families post-tax reform. Click here to register.