Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)

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State Action on Child Tax Credits and Earned Income Tax Credits Since 2021

• By Neva Butkus

Since 2021, there has been a flurry of new and expanded state Child Tax Credits and Earned Income Tax Credits. This continued momentum speaks to the power and popularity of these credits and the need to boost the financial security of families and children across the country.

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When Did Your State Enact a Child Tax Credit?

• By Neva Butkus

The Child Tax Credit (CTC) is an important tool to fight child poverty and help families make ends meet. When designed well, it can also make tax systems less regressive. As of 2020, only six states had CTCs. Today, 15 states have CTCs, with many credits exceeding $1,000 per qualifying child.

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How Much Would Every Family in Every State Get if the Megabill’s Tax Cuts Given to the Rich Had Instead Been Evenly Divided?

• By Michael Ettlinger

If instead of giving $117 billion to the richest 1 percent, that money had been evenly divided among all Americans, we'd each get $343 - or nearly $1,400 for a family of four.

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Celebrating 50 Years of the Earned Income Tax Credit

• By Neva Butkus

This week, we celebrate 50 years of the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the impact it's had on millions of workers and families. In 2023 alone, the latest year of available data, the federal EITC alongside the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit lifted 6.4 million people and 3.4 million children out of poverty.

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New Leadership Should Seize Tax Justice Mandate; Cash Payments Offer On-ramp

• By Amy Hanauer

With the victory of Senators-elect Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Georgia, Democrats now control all three branches of government. New leaders should seize this moment to create a tax code that does much more to reduce inequality and to resource long-overdue investments in climate, health, education and other essentials. Most immediately, the historic election shifts power, making it easier to deliver on the promise to increase the recently enacted $600 cash payments to $2,000…

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National and State-by-State Estimates of New $600 Cash Payments

• By Steve Wamhoff

The House and Senate are about to pass the first COVID-19 relief legislation since the CARES Act was enacted in March. The new relief package includes, among other provisions, cash payments of $600 per person, which is half as large as the payments provided under the CARES Act, but also extends payments to spouses and children of certain undocumented immigrants who were left out of the previous payments.