Today, Fighting Chance for Families spokeswoman Marcela Mulholland joined Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) in New York City to call on Democratic leadership to make the expanded Child Tax Credit permanent.
“The expanded Child Tax Credit has played a critical role in our recovery and there is absolutely no reason for Congress to cut it off and pull the rug out from under families and the economy. If Congress allows this expanded tax credit to expire it would force countless families into poverty, make it more difficult for Americans to afford childcare, groceries, and other necessities — and threaten our economic recovery,” said Fighting Chance for Families spokeswoman Marcela Mulholland. “We can’t allow that to happen — and that’s why we are so grateful for the work of champions like Representative Torres who are fighting to make this expansion permanent.”
The press conference also included Children’s Defense Fund Associate Melissa Genadri and Bronx resident and Beat the Odds Scholar & Youth Advocate, Kiara, who shared her family's own experience receiving the first monthly payment of the expanded Child Tax Credit.
Mulholland’s full remarks as delivered can be read below:
Thank you all for having me today, and thank you Representative Torres for your incredible work on this important issue. My name is Marcela Mulholland and I am here representing Fighting Chance for Families, a collaboration between progressive organizations Groundwork Collaborative and Data for Progress advocating for the permanent expansion of the Child Tax Credit.
Earlier this year, President Biden signed into law a historic tax cut for working and middle class families by enhancing and expanding the Child Tax Credit for families — and already we are seeing the significant anti-poverty AND economic benefits. July’s phenomenal jobs report shows that the Child Tax Credit is an essential economy-booster, and experts agree that a continued investment would be game changing for our communities.
A permanent expansion of the Child Tax Credit would bring a historic end to child poverty and Black poverty, offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring generational change for children now and in the future. It will help bring parents back to the workforce and give a much-needed shot in the arm to local economies.
It’s time to make it permanent — and polling shows the American people agree. Fighting Chance for Families’ latest poll of national voters show families who receive the Child Tax Credit are widely supportive of the policy across party lines — including Trump Republicans. We’re seeing that the more people learn about it and see checks in their bank accounts, the more they support it and want to see it extended.
As we continue to grapple with the pandemic, we can’t afford to lose this economic progress. If we allow this tax cut to expire, it would force countless families into poverty, make it more difficult for Americans to afford things like childcare and groceries, and hurt the economic recovery we need following this pandemic. We can’t allow that to happen — and it’s why we are so grateful for the work of champions like Representative Torres who are fighting to make this benefit permanent.
