Senate Republicans have introduced legislation for a $500-per-child tax credit for 35 million American families.
The proposal filed Wednesday is similar to a credit the House approved this spring.The bill was sponsored by Sen. Don Nickles, R-Okla., and 17 co-sponsors including Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole of Kansas, a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination.
Like the House bill, Nickles' tax credit would be nonrefundable, which means that families too poor to owe federal income taxes would not be entitled to it. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal research and advocacy group, says that means that families of the poorest one-third of American children would not receive any relief.
Under the budget Congress has already approved, lawmakers will seek to cut taxes $245 billion over the next seven years, including breaks for businesses and investors. Nickles said the child tax credit would cost $164 billion and make most of that tax reduction "family friendly."