Latest news with #EITC
Axios
12 hours ago
- Business
- Axios
Senators warn big bill would make credit harder to get for low-income families
Buried in the " big, beautiful bill" is a provision that would require low-income Americans to pre-certify to get the Earned Income Tax Credit, a half-century old benefit that keeps millions of families out of poverty. Why it matters: Those hurdles would make the credit harder to get, or potentially even dissuade people from filing, say tax experts and Democrats who oppose the bill. State of play: The provision hasn't gotten a lot of attention, compared to changes to Medicaid and SNAP. Now some Democrats, led by Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, are demanding Republicans cut it from the final bill. In a letter Thursday, addressed to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson, the Dems note that 20% of eligible recipients already miss out on the credit because they're unaware it exists or believe it's too complicated. The new changes, "only exacerbate the EITC's existing shortcomings by creating more red tape and complexity for workers hoping to claim the credit," they write. "This will lead to fewer eligible workers claiming the EITC, resulting in an effective tax increase on America's working families." Senators Michael Bennet (Colo.), Cory Booker (NJ), Tim Kaine (Va.) and Ron Wyden (Ore.) and a few others signed on. The big picture: The provision is one of a handful in the bill that would impose more administrative hurdles for low-income Americans. There are new and expanded work requirements for Medicaid and SNAP, and a requirement that some adults re-certify for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act twice a year. Tax breaks for higher-income individuals and businesses do not appear to include any such requirements, which impose what some call a "time tax" on working people that ultimately winds up discouraging them from using benefits. How it works: The bill directs the Treasury Department to establish a process for taxpayers to obtain a "qualifying certificate" for each child they're claiming under the deduction. It's not clear how the IRS — already struggling after staffing cuts under DOGE — would do this. The requirement would take effect in 2028. If taxpayers don't have such a certificate, they'd be denied the refundable portion of the tax credit i.e., the money they get back in their refunds. By the numbers: On average, eligible taxpayers got a $2,743 from the credit in 2023, per IRS data, the most recent available. For tax year 2024, it was worth a maximum of $7,830 for families with three or more children. What they're saying: "The IRS will need to handle potentially tens of millions of qualifying child applications, which will likely trigger a deluge of phone calls and requests for assistance," per a report from the Tax Law Center at NYU. "Taxpayers who fail to navigate the system successfully will not receive their credit, even if eligible." The provision is effectively a "backdoor cut" to the EITC, writes the author of the NYU analysis in a Substack post. "[The] bill would increase scrutiny and burden for low-income taxpayers even as its tax cuts for the wealthy have no similar requirements," writes Greg Leiserson, who previously was a senior economist in the Biden Council of Economic Advisers. The other side:"Basic eligibility checks for government programs are not only a reasonable ask of beneficiaries, but a commonsense check against waste, fraud, and abuse," White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement. "It's both condescending and out-of-touch for so-called 'experts' to automatically assume that everyday Americans are either too stupid or too lazy to verify their income – as they do every day for a loan, credit card, or new lease application – when thousands of dollars' worth of government benefits are on the line." Flashback: A provision like this was tried decades ago and was later abandoned because it deterred eligible workers from claiming the credit and was costly to implement relative to any savings.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Dems mostly pleased, GOP ‘shocked' as state budget deal solidifies
State legislators clashed Monday over the final version of the state's two-year budget that was hailed by Democrats for providing additional money for Medicaid, nonprofit organizations, special education, and the working poor. The plan calls for sending checks of $250 to about 85,000 lower-income households who already qualify for the earned income tax credit for the working poor. The money will be directed to the neediest families with children; budget negotiators dropped a previous Democratic plan that would have provided a child tax credit for families earning as much as $200,000 per year. The massive, 693-page document pays for everything from dental care for prison inmates to pay raises of 3.5% for Superior Court judges and others whose salaries are tied to the judges. Lawmakers were preparing to vote as early as Monday night on the two-year, $55.8 billion package. The debate did not start until 4:45 p.m. and was continuing Monday night. House Speaker Matt Ritter of Hartford said Democrats are broadly pleased with the final compromises made in recent days with Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont. 'People are very happy to make the investments in child care that we're making, to have the child tax credit through the EITC program … to do the massive amounts of Medicaid funding we're doing, $20 million [in the first year] and $45 million,' Ritter said. 'People are really, really happy. A lot of people never thought we'd get to this point. It's a reminder that if you just keep going, if you keep negotiating, if you keep coming up with ideas, you can solve even the most difficult of problems. But Republicans had a sharply different view, blasting the budget as a bloated document that did not closely follow the fiscal guardrails that were adopted in 2017 by the legislature and have been credited with restoring the state's fiscal health in recent years. House Republican leader Vincent Candelora of North Branford quoted the phrase, traditionally credited to the French philosopher Voltaire, that the perfect should not be the enemy of the good. 'This budget is neither perfect nor good for the state of Connecticut,' Candelora told reporters Monday. 'This budget eviscerates all of our fiscal guardrails. They are destroying the volatility cap. It is creating a gimmick in the first year to get around the spending cap. Finally, we are devoting the surplus and the revenue cap permanently to an off-budget early childhood account. … In the long run, it is setting up the state of Connecticut for failure and tax increases. … I am shocked that the governor would agree to this budget.' Democrats, though, said flatly that the budget remains under the spending cap in both years, as required by state law. Candelora said Democrats are not setting aside enough money to pay down pension liabilities because some of the money will be earmarked for other programs like the early childhood endowment fund that is expected to receive $200 million this year. 'They are acting as if we are never going to see another recession for the rest of our lives,' Candelora told reporters at the state Capitol. Rep. Tammy Nuccio of Tolland, the ranking House Republican on the budget committee, said the state is coming off the 'sugar high' of billions in federal money from the coronavirus pandemic and is now finding it difficult to pay for multiple programs. Even with the spending cap, the state is able to increase spending by about $1 billion next year to $27 billion, up from $26 billion. A longtime accountant and financial analyst for large insurance companies like Cigna and Aetna, Nuccio said the breakneck pace of the legislative session, where staff members literally work through the night to cobble together documents at the last minute, is not common outside the Capitol building. 'In the real world, this doesn't happen,' Nuccio said on the House floor. 'They dropped a 700-page document at 4 o'clock in the morning. … We've gotta read it in less than 12 hours.' Republicans and the Connecticut Business and Industry Association were also concerned that the budget includes Lamont's proposed change to the 'unitary' tax that they said would lead to tax increases for large, multi-state corporations like Electric Boat, Wal-Mart, Raytheon, Amazon, Home Depot, Lowe's, AT&T, Verizon, and the parent company of Sikorsky helicopters, among others. Amazon is now the fifth-largest employer in the state, and the unitary tax would hit about 20 major corporations, officials said. The tax has not been mentioned much at the state Capitol in recent years, but Fairfield-based General Electric Co. cited the tax among the reasons that the company decided to move its headquarters to Boston during the tenure of then-Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. But Lamont and his team are in frequent contact with top business leaders, and he said after the initial proposal was released that the leaders had not raised major objections. Despite criticisms, Lamont's chief spokesman, Rob Blanchard, said Connecticut is in much better fiscal shape than some other states. 'This biennium budget makes smart investments in our future, our communities and schools, all while prioritizing affordability, holding the line on taxes, and keeping us on a sound fiscal path,' Blanchard said. 'More importantly, it averts the mistakes of the past by making significant payments on our pension liabilities, preserves the strength of our fiscal guardrails and continues to grow our historic $4.1 billion Rainy Day fund—all of which will guard against economic headwinds. While other states are cutting services, raising taxes or wishing for a Rainy Day fund as robust as our fund, Connecticut has worked hard to turn things around economically and maintain the progress that avoids those tough choices.' Rep. Maria Horn, a Litchfield County Democrat who represents multiple towns, said the state is operating under various constraints that make budgeting difficult. 'We cannot do everything,' Horn said, adding that choices were made to help the most vulnerable citizens. Republicans and hospitals were also concerned about an increase in the hospital tax that is designed to raise an additional $375 million in the first year and $400 million in the second year. They argued that the money is dependent on Connecticut receiving a waiver from the federal government, but the state has not received the waiver yet. 'It's really a hope and a prayer,' Candelora said. The Connecticut Hospital Association, whose lobbyists testify on multiple bills, said the budget would not be good for hospitals. 'The tax increase on hospitals and proposed cuts to healthcare providers contained in this budget will be devastating for hospitals, their workforce, and their patients,' the association said. 'This tax increase is far greater than what Governor Lamont proposed earlier this year. It will leave hospitals facing a staggering cut of hundreds of millions of dollars, while the state uses federal dollars to balance its budget without any action to increase Medicaid reimbursement for care provided to patients in hospitals. These policies will move Connecticut backward in our collaborative efforts to make healthcare more affordable and accessible.' Lawmakers were also concerned about a narrowly written provision that they believe could benefit only one company in the state. In order to obtain tax credits for research and development, the company must be 'a single member limited liability company that has more than three thousand employees in this state and is engaged in manufacturing, with expertise in mechatronics, alignment and sensor technology and optical fabrication.' Chris DiPentima, the president of CBIA, said the provision was designed to help ASML Wilton, a major company in Fairfield County. The company's website says it specializes 'in mechatronics, alignment and sensor technology,' which is exactly the language mentioned in the budget. DiPentima, though, says the research and development tax credits need to be expanded to much smaller companies like in Massachusetts, where companies with as few as five employees can earn the credits. Despite statements by various leaders that they had crafted a 'no-tax-increase budget,' DiPentima said that characterization is incorrect. 'There are business tax increases,' he told The Courant on Monday. 'We're losing sight of the importance of the business community to Connecticut's economy. … I've got major concerns with the work-around on the spending cap.' He added, 'This is the first time in five years where we've had business tax increases and a changing of the guardrails. … Is Connecticut losing its fiscal discipline again? That's this question mark. Are we going to get back to fiscal discipline?' Democrats have been pushing for years for a child tax credit, and their latest proposal called for a permanent, refundable credit of $150 per child for a maximum of three children, or $450 per year. That represented a sharp drop from an original proposal of $600 per child for an overall total of $1,800 per year. With various pressing needs on the tax and spending sides of the complicated state budget, lawmakers say they are often unable to award as much tax relief as they would like. The overall plan would have saved families a combined $82.7 million per year, but the idea was dropped as being too expensive and helping too many families at higher income levels. Lawmakers also dropped Lamont's proposal for an increase in the popular property tax credit to $350, up from $300, per tax filer. Lamont's proposal was expected to help 800,000 tax filers, officials said, as the income eligibility would have increased, an issue that had restricted the credit in the past. Nonprofit organizations, including those who hold contracts to perform various services that otherwise would be performed by state employees, were pleased with a funding increase in the second year. 'The budget is not everything we requested, but in the context of this year's discussions about budget restrictions, we are grateful for their choice to support programs that will improve thousands of lives and even save some,' said Gian Carl Casa, a former top state budget official who now leads the statewide nonprofit alliance. 'Rank-and-file lawmakers, including progressives, moderates and members of the Black and Puerto Rican Caucus, responded by making it clear that the people served by community nonprofits are a priority.' The nonprofits are expecting to receive $76 million in the second year, plus an additional $30 million for non-developmental disability providers. The deal also calls for an additional $66 million union settlement for providers and an additional $15 million for Medicaid rates above the appropriations committee total, officials said. 'Is this a perfect budget? No,' said Rep. Toni Walker, a longtime New Haven Democrat who co-chairs the legislature's budget committee. 'But we have a situation where we have a spending cap problem and a revenue problem.' Christopher Keating can be reached at ckeating@
Business Wire
16-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Scholarship Organization Continues to Grow Its Impact and Reach
KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools (BLOCS) is pleased to announce their next step in supporting educational opportunities across Pennsylvania by assuming responsibility and operations of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program for the Diocese of Allentown. For many years BLOCS has supported schools and students in the Diocese of Allentown and the broader Lehigh Valley region and worked in partnership with the diocese-operated scholarship organization, the Eastern Pennsylvania Scholarship Foundation (EPSF). BLOCS will now manage and operate the EITC program in support of schools in the Diocese of Allentown. In conjunction with this, BLOCS welcomes Amy Impellizzeri to the King of Prussia based organization. Ms. Impellizzeri previously served as the Director of Scholarships and championed the EITC effort for the Diocese of Allentown and EPSF. 'We are thrilled to have Amy join BLOCS, and we look forward to bringing our full team and dedicated services to the donors and schools in the Diocese of Allentown and their broad region,' said Rob Delany, CEO of BLOCS. 'We have enjoyed a collaborative relationship with Amy and are grateful for the opportunity to continue our work to increase the amount of scholarships for our children.' 'Diocese of Allentown schools are filled with potential,' said Dr. Michael St. Pierre, Superintendent of Catholic Education in the Diocese of Allentown. 'We believe that our inclusion in the BLOCS system will allow us to grow our funding for schools exponentially.' About BLOCS For more than 40 years, BLOCS has been committed to providing eligible families access to high-quality, values-based private or faith-based education, providing students with positive and successful pathways forward. As the largest scholarship organization in the state, BLOCS awards 30,000 scholarships annually to families and students across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. More information can be found at: About EPSF The Eastern Pennsylvania Scholarship Fund (EPSF) provides financial assistance to families within the Diocese of Allentown to help cover the cost of tuition. School age students range from PreK to 12th grade. The Diocese also operates several schools which specialize in learning differences.
CairoScene
15-05-2025
- Business
- CairoScene
du Launches GPU-as-a-Service to Boost Enterprise AI in the UAE
du's new GPU-as-a-Service platform aims to support AI development across sectors by offering high-performance, scalable compute infrastructure to enterprises and developers in the UAE. May 15, 2025 UAE telecom operator du, part of Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), has launched a new GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) offering designed to meet the rising demand for high-performance compute infrastructure required for enterprise artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning workloads. The service provides access to NVIDIA GPUs on-demand through a subscription model, allowing businesses to scale AI development without the need for significant upfront investment in hardware. du's platform will be hosted in its Tier III data centres, with enterprise-grade SLAs and secure, low-latency access, tailored for AI model training, inferencing, and large-scale data processing. By launching GPUaaS, du positions itself as a critical enabler of AI adoption in the UAE's public and private sectors. The initiative aligns with the country's broader digital transformation goals, particularly the UAE's National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2031. du's enterprise clients—including those in finance, healthcare, energy, and smart city planning—can now accelerate AI development pipelines while managing costs and resource allocation more efficiently. The service is expected to appeal to startups and research institutions as well, offering flexible compute access without the traditional capital expenditure hurdles.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
More Oregonians are working multiple jobs, showing need for a stronger tax credit for workers
The earned income tax credit will help families, columnist Tyler Mac Innis argues. (Getty Images) 'No amount of budgeting right now is going to make up for the fact that we do not make enough to make a living,' says Ashley Salazar. She recently took on a second job, baking in the early hours of the morning before heading to a full-time job as a pharmacy technician. Ashley's story, featured in a recent KATU report, is an all-too-familiar refrain, especially at a time when the cost of living is rising and tariffs are supercharging the trend. In Oregon, there are thousands of Ashleys. That's why one of the best investments the Oregon legislature can make this session is to renew and expand the tax credit for working families, the Oregon Earned Income Tax Credit. It would give a boost to Ashley and hundreds of thousands of other hardworking families struggling to make ends meet. 'In 2024, 127,000 Oregonians held more than one job in addition to their primary job,' according to a recent report by the Oregon Employment Department. Six percent of Oregon workers worked multiple jobs last year. Even for many getting by on a single job, Ashley's story should feel familiar. The cost of affording basic needs continues to rise. Compared to other states, Oregonians spend the 8th most on groceries, according to a recent LendingTree report. Electric bills have soared in recent years, as much as 56 percent since 2021. And of course, the cost of housing is ever rising. A minimum wage worker in Oregon would need to work 74 hours a week just to afford a one-bedroom apartment, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition. There is much to do to stem the tide of rising costs. But one proposal before the Oregon Legislature this session would help workers struggling to get by. House Bill 2958 would make much-needed improvements to Oregon's Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The EITC is a refundable tax credit that boosts the after-tax income of workers. The federal version of the credit lifts 68,000 Oregonians, including 34,000 children, out of poverty each year. In turn, Oregon provides a match of the federal credit worth 9 percent for most families, and up to 12 percent for families with young children, putting additional cash into the pockets of hardworking families. Without action this session, Oregon's match of the federal EITC will disappear, as the tax credit is scheduled to expire. HB 2958 would not only renew Oregon's credit, but double the match available to eligible Oregonians. It would make Oregon's tax credit twice as impactful. Moreover, it would expand eligibility to childless workers under age 25 and older than 65, who are currently barred from claiming the credit even if their income would otherwise qualify them. HB 2958 recognizes that neither youth nor old age protects against economic insecurity, and that workers of any age may struggle to pay the bills. What kind of impact would HB 2958 have on a family? Consider what it would mean for a family with three kids living off the wages of a full-time minimum wage worker. Under HB 2958, their Oregon EITC would increase from about $840 to $1,750. That additional $910 may be enough to help a family confront a sudden crisis, like the need to make a car repair, or it might help them buy clothes and school supplies for the kids, or help them catch up on rent. Few bills before the Oregon Legislature this session stand to directly boost the incomes of Oregon workers like doubling the EITC would. Ashley and thousands of workers like her are already working their tails off in a valiant effort to just meet their basic needs. Oregon can ease a bit of their load by strengthening the tax credit for working families. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
