Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) speaks during the weekly Senate presser in the U.S. Capitol building in Washington on July 9, 2024.(Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced on July 30 that a bill to expand the Child Tax Credit would receive a vote in the Senate on Aug. 1, before the body breaks for its month-long August recess.
The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act would increase the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit for the 2023 tax year to $1,800—up from $1,600 at present—with $100 increases each year for 2024 and 2025, at which the full $2,000 of the credit would become refundable. It would also allow parents to claim a credit for each qualifying child, as opposed to a single credit regardless of the number of children, and make it adjustable for inflation in 2024 and 2025.
But the measure faces headwinds in the Senate despite gaining two-thirds support in the House. Some Senate Republicans took issue with a “lookback provision,” which allows parents to claim the credit based on a previous year’s income even if greater than the current year. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the chairman of the Finance Committee and the bill’s lead sponsor in the Senate, told The Epoch Times that he offered to remove the “lookback” provision in response, though it hasn’t changed Republican opposition.