NWLC Praises Passage of Economic Help for Families, Calls for Responsible Tax Reform

(Washington, D.C.)  Late yesterday the House voted 277-148 to approve the economic package that was passed by the Senate earlier this week. The President is expected to sign this into law shortly. The package includes an extension of emergency unemployment insurance benefits for thirteen months, a two-year extension of  improvements in tax credits for working families and Bush-era tax cuts at all income levels, a payroll tax cut, various business tax cuts and a two-year reduction in the estate tax for the wealthiest estates. The following is a statement from NWLC Co-President Nancy Duff Campbell:

“We are glad that Congress has approved urgently needed help for struggling families and the economy. But, unfortunately the bill also squanders $139 billion on tax breaks for the wealthy that will help the very rich get richer, but will do little to help our fragile economy.

“On the positive side, this legislation will restore emergency unemployment insurance benefits for long-term jobless workers through next year and provide tax benefits for low- and moderate-income families. Helping these families not only prevents hardship, but also helps the economy by creating demand for goods and services, which will result in more jobs. The legislation will create an estimated 1.6 million jobs next year according to Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

“With the unemployment rate at an unacceptably high 9.8 percent, the extension of the emergency unemployment insurance program is good news for workers who have been out of a job longer than six months and whose benefits expired last month. According to the Council of Economic Advisers, this measure alone will create 600,000 jobs next year.

“The legislation’s vital two-year extension of the improvements to the refundable tax credits enacted as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is particularly important to millions of low-income families, which are disproportionately headed by women:

• Child Tax Credit. The extension of this credit for lower-income families will help 10.5 million families with 18 million children.
• Earned Income Tax Credit. The extension of the EITC for working families with three or more children and the reduction in the marriage penalty will benefit 6.5 million working parents with 15 million children. 
• American Opportunity Tax Credit.  The extension of this partially refundable tax credit of up to $2,500 to help students and their families cover the cost of college tuition will help 8 million students afford college.       

“Unfortunately, the legislation also extends the Bush-era tax cuts for the top two percent of households for two years and cuts the estate tax for the heirs of multimillionaires and billionaires—a strategy that will benefit only the richest one-quarter of one percent of estates. These tax cuts are among the least effective ways to boost the economy and create jobs, according to independent economic analysts. Yet many members of Congress who insisted on giving millionaires over $100,000 a year in additional income tax breaks and $1.5 million in estate tax breaks also blocked the extension of a successful job creation program, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Emergency Fund; cut funding for child support enforcement; and cut SNAP (Food Stamp) benefits. These measures are a vital lifeline for low-income women and families, their combined cost is less than one-tenth of the cost of tax cuts for the wealthy and they have a direct stimulative effect.

“President Obama will, and should, sign this bill.  But he also should make it a priority to advance responsible and equitable tax reform.  And while millionaires and billionaires are enjoying their many tax breaks, the President should reject calls for deep cuts to programs vital to women and their families in the name of deficit reduction.”

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