By Josh Boak
The Treasury Department said Monday that 39 million families are set to receive monthly child payments beginning on July 15.
The payments are part of President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, which expanded the child tax credit for one year and made it possible to pre-pay the benefits on a monthly basis. Nearly 88% of children are set to receive the benefits without their parents needing to take any additional action.
“This tax cut sends a clear and powerful message to American workers, working families with children: Help is here,” Biden said in remarks at the White House.
Qualified families will receive a payment of up to $300 per month for each child under 6 and up to $250 per month for children between the ages of 6 and 17. The child tax credit was previously capped at $2,000 and only paid out to families with income tax obligations after they filed with the IRS.
But for this year, couples earning $150,000 or less can receive the full payments on the 15th of each month, in most cases by direct deposit. The benefits total $3,600 annually for children under 6 and $3,000 for those who are older. The IRS will determine eligibility based on the 2019 and 2020 tax years, but people will also be able to update their status through an online portal. The administration is also setting up another online portal for non-filers who might be eligible for the child tax credit.
The president has proposed an extension of the increased child tax credit through 2025 as part of his $1.8 trillion families plan. Outside analysts estimate that the payments could essentially halve child poverty. The expanded credits could cost roughly $100 billion a year.
Updated on May 17, 2021, at 2:06 p.m. ET with the latest details.
Chuck Rocha, former senior adviser for Bernie for President 2020 and 2016, talks new Book "Tio Bernie," and what the Biden-Harris campaign can do to secure the Latino vote.
President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, has pleaded not guilty to charges that he ripped off donors trying to fund a southern border wall.
Dollar stores have conquered the United States, in an era where a “retail apocalypse” is slowly decimating brick and mortar retail shopping. The spread of these dollar stores is also deeply tied to issues of income inequality in the U.S. It’s argued that not only do these institutions benefit from poverty, but also that they perpetuate it. It has even led to some communities to limit the spread of dollar stores in their towns. So how did the dollar store conquer the U.S. - and what is their real impact?
An appeals court has allowed ride-hailing giants Uber and Lyft to continue treating their drivers as independent contractors in California while an appeal works its way through the court.
President Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to allow him to block critics from his personal Twitter account.
The new rule would tweak the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), which regulates the fiduciary duties of private plan managers.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is in a coma in a hospital in Siberia after falling ill from a suspected poisoning.
Kamala Harris is poised to make history as the first Black woman to accept a spot on a major party’s presidential ticket.
Hedge fund manager and former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci joined Cheddar’s News Wrap Thursday evening with a warning about the current state of the S&P 500 index.
Democrats have formally nominated Joe Biden as their 2020 presidential nominee.
