About 35 million families throughout the country stopped receiving monthly child tax credit payments from the government after Congress failed to renew the program.
The program first started sending out monthly payments in July of 2021 ranging from $250 to $300 per child to families that qualified. Studies have shown that millions of children have been lifted out of poverty and child hunger was significantly reduced as a result.
Now, families who once relied on the funds are scrambling to adjust as the pandemic continues and the cost of living continues to rise.
U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore from the 4th Congressional District of Wisconsin says the child tax credit has prevented families from being food insecure and has helped with transportation and school costs.
"We did something that has never been done in this country before, and that is we reduced poverty ... and, it has real big impact, obviously, on communities of color, which had disparate rates of poverty," she says.
Moore says this credit has had a transformational impact and is heartbroken that it hasn't been renewed.
Tatiana Joseph is a mother of three who had been receiving the monthly tax credit. Joseph, an educator, says the pandemic has brought interruptions to school, child care and her family's budget.
"This tax credit for us has given us options, and the means and the availability to ensure that we have consistent child care," she says.
When it was announced that the monthly tax credit was ending, Joseph says she had to reshuffle her budget again.
"It's almost like we have to revamp the budget every single month to figure out what is available, what needs to be taken care of and how we're going to get there," she says.
Moore says this tax credit has also rescued people from poverty, food insecurity and homelessness. "This has been a lifeline and an investment in kids," she says.
Though the monthly payments have ended, Moore says families can file their income taxes and get the other six month child tax credit in a lump sum with their tax refund for 2021.
"And of course, that's not the way we wanted it to happen. We didn't want any disruption in the monthly payment, but we are ready to take that battle on and to try to get this policy back on track," she says.
Joseph would also like the monthly payments to continue. "It takes a village to raise a child, and this was the village coming to the rescue of parents," she says.
