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Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), Senior House Democrat on Congress’ Joint Economic Committee and a member of the House Ways and Means Tax Subcommittee, today voted for bipartisan legislation to expand the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which the House of Representatives pass on an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 357-70.

Beyer spoke during floor debate in favor of the bill:

“This bill is not perfect; no bill ever is. But this act is win, win, win: 400,000 children will be lifted out of poverty, 200,000 new affordable homes will be built, and research and development – the absolute essential investment for economic prosperity – will be incentivized again. Politics is the art of the possible; in a divided Congress, that is the best we can do.”

The Ways and Means Committee previously voted to favorably report H.R. 7024, the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, on a vote of 40-3. Text of the bill is available here, with a section-by-section summary here.

The legislation includes provisions that would (per the Senate Finance Committee):

• Expand access to the child tax credit with a phased increase to the refundable portion of the child tax credit for 2023, 2024, and 2025.
• Eliminate a penalty for larger families by ensuring the child tax credit phase-in is applied fairly to families with multiple children.
• Offer a one-year income “lookback” provision to create flexibility for taxpayers to use either current- or prior-year income to calculate the child tax credit in 2024 or 2025, similar to bipartisan action taken six times in the past 15 years.
• Adjust the tax credit for inflation starting in 2024.
• Increase the supply of low-income housing by enhancing the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit with increased state allocations and a reduced tax-exempt bond financing requirement.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that the bill would benefit 16 million children in low-income families and “lift as many as 400,000 children above the poverty line” in its first year, with more even more set to benefit in 2025.

Beyer served on the House Committee on Ways and Means during the drafting of the American Rescue Plan Act, which included the expanded Child Tax Credit of 2021 that drove the largest reduction in child poverty in American history. He made support and advocacy for the expanded Child Tax Credit a key focus during his tenure as Chairman of Congress’ Joint Economic Committee, and remains a leading voice on the Ways and Means Committee supporting revival of the expanded CTC.

Beyer is a lead cosponsor of the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act, bipartisan and bicameral legislation to strengthen the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.