News Round Up: June 11, 2018
Here are some highlights from the past week’s news on family tax credit issues:
Top Story: During a special session, the Louisiana Legislature passed a bill to expand the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from 3.5 to 5 percent of the federal credit. The expansion is credited to Democrats – particularly members of the Legislative Black Caucus – refusing to support a sales tax renewal without the passage of a tax break for low-income workers. The bill now heads to Governor John Bel Edwards (D) for signature. (The Times-Picayune)
- The California legislature approved an expansion of the state’s EITC for young adults and senior citizens without dependent children, but rejected expanding the credit to immigrant workers filing with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs). (VC Star)
- Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families released a new report on the intersection between poverty and health outcomes and how Arkansas’s current policies may be stifling efforts to improve public health. The report recommends enacting a state-level EITC as one of several policy solutions for boosting income and improving health outcomes for working families. (AACF)
- The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) offered steps states can take to estimate the cost of state-level EITCs in fiscal year 2019. (CBPP)
- We blogged about Save the Children’s new report, Growing Up Rural in America, and how state-level EITCs could address extreme poverty in rural areas. (TCWF)