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| Child Tax Credit Bill Extends Dollars to Low-Income New Mexicans |
June 12, 2003 |
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Washington, DC - Congresswoman Heather Wilson voted today to extend the Child Tax Credit to thousands of low-income New Mexicans, most of whom already pay little or no federal taxes. HR 1308, the All-American Tax Relief Act of 2003, now goes to Conference with the Senate.
Wilson asked House Leadership last week to extend the child tax credit to all families, regardless of taxable income. She also asked that the sunset provisions be removed so the expanded benefit won`t disappear in coming years. Wilson`s two requests were fulfilled in the legislation the House approved today.
"I urge Congress to make the Child Tax Credit include all families, regardless of taxable income. Doing so will affect thousands of low-income families in my district, and will also affect thousands of military families with income too low to qualify for the credit under HR 2," Wilson said today. "This bill, as well as the last job growth package we passed, will help create jobs in New Mexico and throughout our country."
Provisions included in H.R. 1308, the All-American Tax Relief Act of 2003, include:
Increases the child credit to $1,000 per eligible child through 2010. The $1,000 child credit is scheduled to sunset in 2005. It will gradually increase back to $1,000 by 2010. H.R. 1308 ensures that the child credit stays at the $1,000 level through 2010. The provision provides $57.3 billion of tax relief over 11 years.
Eliminates the marriage penalty in the child credit. The phase-out thresholds of the child credit create a marriage penalty for married couples with incomes over $110,000. Millions of children are denied the child credit because of this penalty. H.R. 1308 eliminates the marriage penalty by raising the phase-out threshold for married couples to $150,000. Eliminating this marriage penalty provides $20.4 billion of tax relief to middle-income families over 11 years
Accelerates the increase in the refundable child credit. Under present law, the child credit is refundable by an amount equal to 10% of earned income in excess of $10,500. The 10% rate is scheduled to increase to 15% in 2005. H.R. 1308 accelerates this increase so that the 15% rate takes effect in 2003 instead of 2005. The provision increases child credit payments by $3.5 billion over 11 years.
Provides tax relief and enhances tax fairness for Members of the Armed Forces. H.R. 1308 includes the military tax relief provisions that have passed the House and are awaiting action in the Senate. These provisions include capital gains tax relief on home sales, tax-free death gratuity payments, and tax-free dependent care assistance for members of the military. These provisions provide $836 million of tax relief to members of the Armed Forces over 11 years.
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