DEAR EDITOR:

Two years ago, eligible families started getting monthly payments under the expansion of the Child Tax Credit, or CTC. This led to enormous benefits for those families needing the most support. In 2021, following the expansion of CTC, child poverty in the U.S. dropped by 46%, with the CTC itself lifting 2.9 million children out of poverty. The expansion unfortunately expired, with disastrous effects.

Immediately after the expiration, 3.7 million American children fell into poverty, and a new CLASP report has shown that when these payments stopped, over 40% of families saw increased financial and food insecurity. It is imperative that we get back to an expanded CTC, something that is especially needed locally. In 2020, over 25% of children in Trumbull County lived in poverty, well above the national average.

I call on U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce and U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance to work with their colleagues in the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee to expand the full benefits of CTC, prioritizing low-income families and reject tax legislation which doesn’t.

KEITH TASK

Southington