Child Poverty Skyrockets, Congressional Republicans Are to Blame
Republicans in the House and Senate Blocked Efforts to Make the Expansion of the Child Tax Credit Permanent, Now Feigning Innocence
NEW YORK — On Tuesday, the U.S. Census Bureau released its report on income, poverty, and health insurance coverage for 2022. Among its findings, the Census Bureau reports that the number of children living in poverty in the United States more than doubled, from a record low of 5.2 percent in 2021 to 12.4 percent in 2022. The Bureau attributes much of this drastic increase to the expiration of the expanded Child Tax Credit, which was put in place in March of 2021 as part of President Biden’s American Rescue Plan.
The expansion of the Child Tax Credit was one of the most effective anti-poverty measures in the nation’s history, lifting nearly 3 million children out of poverty over the course of just one year. Congressional Democrats attempted to make this expansion permanent as part of the Build Back Better Act but were blocked by Republicans in the Senate and opposed by Republicans in the House. As a result, the expansion was allowed to expire, and millions of children were plunged back into poverty.
Republicans in both the House and Senate continue to oppose efforts to revive this extremely effective policy. The American Family Act was introduced in June, which would reinstate the Child Tax Credit. It currently has 209 Democratic co-sponsors and 0 Republicans. New York Representatives Anthony D’Esposito, Marc Molinaro, and Brandon Williams have all failed to come out in support of the bill.
“Our representatives claim that they’re there to help us, but when a policy like this comes around—one that actually improves our lives—they’re nowhere to be found,” said Mimi Pierre Johnson, President and Founder of the Elmont Cultural Center. “I’m sick and tired of these empty promises from politicians like Anthony D’Esposito who care more about their rich donors than the people in their communities who are struggling to make ends meet. Representative D’Esposito needs to stop sitting on the sidelines and come out in support of the American Family Act today.”
“Syracuse has the highest child poverty rate of any city in the country, with nearly 50% of our children under 18 living below the poverty line,” said Onondaga County Legislator Mary Kuhn. “Why Representative Brandon Williams hasn’t come out in support of an extension to the Child Tax Credit is beyond me. Maybe it’s because he doesn’t live in the district, but if Rep. Williams truly cared about the issues affecting our families in NY-22, he would fight for policies that give our children a chance at a better life.”
To learn more about the campaign, please reach out to press@empirestatevoices.org
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About Empire State Voices
Empire State Voices (ESV) is a multi-year campaign dedicated to amplifying the voices of everyday working New Yorkers. ESV is fighting for economic policies that make life more affordable for constituents and holding members of Congress across the state accountable when they fail to do the same.
