WASHINGTON – 333 national, state, and local leaders across 42 states urged Senate leadership to reject a reconciliation bill that hurts families and helps billionaires in a letter organized by Economic Security Project Action this week. The House-passed version of this bill guts health and food security to fund tax cuts for the ultra-rich, proposes a Child Tax Credit that would shove more kids into poverty, and adds red tape for working families to access the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The letter argues that Senators have a golden opportunity to reverse course and put families first. Signers of the letter include labor unions, food banks, faith leaders, and children’s advocacy, teachers, health, civil rights, disability rights, economic justice, and immigrants’ rights organizations.

Republicans misleadingly claim their new plan will expand the Child Tax Credit when, in reality, their proposal narrows eligibility and could push 2 million children into, or deeper into, poverty. Republicans’ CTC proposal would:

• Prevent nearly 20 million kids from accessing the full credit because their family income is too low.
• Kick off 4.5 million American kids in mixed-status families who are currently eligible for the credit, just because their parents are immigrants. 
• Raise the credit for higher-income families who already have enough while excluding those with the highest need. 

Republicans’ proposed bill would create difficult and unnecessary burdens for families to claim the EITC—effectively a kind of audit on every EITC recipient with children—while simultaneously handing out trillions in tax cuts to high earners and cutting over $1 trillion from Medicare and Medicaid.  While wealthier people would be better off under this bill, those making less than $51K would be financially worse off.

“Senators should reject the House’s Billionaire Tax Scam and create a bill that puts families first instead,” said Adam Ruben, Director of Economic Security Project Action. “Our lawmakers should expand the Child Tax Credit to more people who need it, rather than expanding tax breaks for corporations and the ultra-wealthy. Cut red tape on the Earned Income Tax Credit to make it more accessible to vulnerable families, instead of cutting lifelines people depend on like Medicaid and SNAP.  Bring kids out of poverty instead of pushing them deeper into it. It’s not rocket science.”