Where the Presidential Field Stands On Tax Credits for Working Families
As Super Tuesday draws nearer, the remaining slate of presidential candidates have all released specific plans for reforming the tax code. Some include proposals to expand tax credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC), while others seek to eliminate them entirely. Here’s a rundown:
- Ted Cruz (R-Texas) recently introduced his tax plan, which preserves the EITC and CTC but eliminates all other credits and institutes a flat income tax.
- Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has long supported a plan to eliminate the EITC but expand the CTC to $2,500 per child.
- Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) and former Secretary of State and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) have both introduced plans that would decrease the tax burden on low-income families, but neither has specified how the EITC and CTC would fit into these plans.
- Businessman Donald Trump (R) has also yet to lay out a vision for tax credits in his tax plan.
- The EITC and CTC would not survive in neurosurgeon Ben Carson’s (R) administration, as he announced he would eliminate all tax credits including the EITC because he believes it is “condescending” to low-income families.
- Only Gov. John Kasich (R-Ohio) specifically proposed expanding the EITC. His plan would increase the EITC by 10 percent.