MORGANTOWN – A group of folks advocating for the continuation of the expanded Child Tax Credit met for a roundtable discussion Thursday to explain why Congress should keep it going.
First, what is the Child Tax Credit? It had been a $2,000 per child annual tax credit for eligible families but was expanded under the American Rescue Plan passed in response to the COVID pandemic.
The credit – called CTC – was increased to $3,600 for children up to age 5 and to $3,000 for ages 6-17; the age limit was raised from 16 to 17; instead of a credit it was turned into a monthly payment; and it’s refundable, meaning families get to keep the money even if their tax bill was less than the total credit.
Under the ARA, it’s set to expire Dec. 31, but Congress is working on including an extension – the length is currently not determined – to include in the Build Back Better reconciliation bill or, if that fails, perhaps a separate bill.
Jim McKay, with Team for West Virginia Children and Prevent Child Abuse West Virginia, said, “It’s making a real difference for West Virginia families.” And 84% of West Virginia children are eligible.
The data shows, he said, that every $1,000 increase in family income correlates with an 8% to 10% decrease in child Protective Services involvement. The CTC enables families to address their own basic needs and access resources. “Families want to help themselves but they can’t always.”
Several parents who receive the credit told their stories.
Brian Butcher said his wife lost her job at the beginning of the pandemic, reducing their income. Also, they had safety concerns about social distancing for their young son at daycare, so they pulled him out.
“Honestly, we were only able to pull our child out of daycare for his own safety because of the Child Tax Credit.” Now, his wife is able to work from home part-time. “We can do what’s best for our family without having to worry about income.”
The CTC allows for more family time together, too, he said, Without it, his wife would have to return to work full time.
Bailee Miller owns a small business. She and her husband have a 19-month-old daughter with epilepsy. Just one of the daughter’s medications costs $300 every six weeks.
“I can’t work full time,” she said. “I can’t send her to daycare. … That $300 pays for her prescription.” The CTC lightens their burden. “We don’t know what the future holds. That $300 definitely means a lot.”
Joshua Lohnes is a CTC recipient and works for WVU’s Center for Resilient Communities. “It’s taken a load of stress off of my family,” he said.
But his job experience also shows him that for a lot of families food is the most flexible budget item. Phone, electric, rent are all fixed so it’s often the food spending that shrinks to pay for car repairs, new clothes and such.
Roundtable moderator Shana Phares, with TSG Consulting in Charleston, said the CTC can help families meet unexpected expenses. “A washer and dryer going out is no longer an ultimate disaster.”
Bonnie Dunn, co-director of West Virginia Health Grandfamilies, offered a different perspective. About 19,000 West Virginia kids are currently being raised by grandparents. Grandparents in the program range in age from 39-82. Many are on fixed incomes and have their own health issues.
The CTC, she said, could help them meet extra expenses their limited budgets don’t allow. “They need all the resources we can offer them.” Nationally, she said, grandfamilies save the foster care system about $6.5 billion per year.
But one problem, she said, is that many grandparents aren’t legal guardians even though they’re raising the kids. McKay said Congress is working on a fix to that, working on language to have the money follow the child so a family caretaker – grandparent, sibling, aunt, uncle or close steprelative could receive funds while the child is in their care.
Some handouts from the roundtable offered a few additional facts. The CTC helps parents in substance abuse recovery programs stay in the programs by relieving their financial stress. By the numbers, 94% of the parents who would receive the extended credit plan to continue working, while parents of infants and toddlers who need to be with their kids are twice as likely to be able to work fewer hours if they receive the credit.
The top five uses for the credit are saving for emergencies; applying it toward food and housing; buying clothes and other essentials for the kids; buying more or better-quality food; contributing to a college fund.
Everyone at the roundtable urged concerned families to contact the members of West Virginia’s Congressional delegation and declare the support for the extension.
TWEET David Beard @dbeardtdp EMAIL dbeard@dominionpost.com
