Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS -- (Senate - January 07, 2009)

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

By Mrs. LINCOLN:

S. 26. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reset the income threshold used to calculate the refundable portion of the child tax credit and to repeal the sunset for certain prior modifications made to the credit; to the Committee on Finance.

Mrs. LINCOLN. Mr. President, I come before the Senate to once again raise an issue that is near and dear to my heart--an issue that is of great importance to working families across this country. In 2001 and again in 2003, Senator Snowe and I worked together to ensure that low-income working families with children receive the benefit of the Child Tax Credit. Last year, we were successful in improving the credit to ensure that more working families are able to receive its benefit for the tax year 2008, and I come here today to introduce legislation that will ensure this important provision continues to provide tax relief for our working families in the future.

The change we made to the credit last year will ensure the Child Tax Credit is available for all working families. As some of my colleagues may be aware, to be eligible for the refundable child tax credit, working families must meet an income threshold. If they don't earn enough, then they don't qualify for the credit. The problem is that some of our working parents are working full-time and yet they still don't earn enough to receive a meaningful benefit from this provision because they just don't have a high enough income.

It is wrong to provide the credit to some hardworking Americans, while leaving others behind. That is why we temporarily lowered the income threshold to $8,500 in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act last Fall. As a result, the single, working parent that is stocking shelves at your local grocery store for minimum wage will receive a meaningful credit this year.

This improvement to the credit must be made permanent to ensure that our tax code works for all Americans, especially those working parents forced to get by on the minimum wage. Today, we are introducing the Working Family Child Assistance Act, legislation which makes the refundable Child Tax Credit permanent and sets the income threshold at a reasonable level so that all working parents, including those making the minimum wage, receive the benefit of the credit.

I look forward to working with my colleagues and the Administration to ensure that those low-income, hard-working families that need this credit the most do receive its benefits.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source