After Congress expanded the federal Child Tax Credit (CTC) in 2021, child poverty in the U.S. dropped to an all-time low of 5.2%. When the pandemic-era expansion ended, child poverty rebounded to 12.4%.

Federal policymakers have the opportunity to address that increase this year through a bipartisan tax package currently under consideration in Congress. This measure would expand the federal CTC for three years as well as roll back some corporate tax increases stemming from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Action by Congress to expand the federal CTC would help an estimated 16 million kids in low-income families in its first year. By year two, the Center on Budget and and Policy Priorities estimates that 500,000 children across the U.S. would be lifted out of poverty.

In Nebraska, expansion of the federal CTC would help the families of 80,000 children to afford necessities like food, utilities, clothing and rent in its first year, necessities that families used their tax refunds for under the earlier version of the CTC expansion, according to a Kids Count report.

In addition to federal backing, 14 states have state-level CTCs in place as further investment in the next generation. A Child Care Tax Credit passed in Nebraska last year is sometimes conflated with the CTC, but its intent is specifically to offset the cost of child care. The CTC instead is broader and helps qualifying parents offset any costs associated with raising a child.

Two bills (LBs 294 and 1324) would launch a state-level CTC in Nebraska to supplement the federal CTC and address food insufficiency and put more money into the pockets of hardworking families to afford child care. A state-level CTC of $500 to $1,000 could serve to reduce the child poverty rate in Nebraska by 25%.

Follow these links (Senate, House) to contact members of Nebraska’s delegation.