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Update
Thanks for making calls and activating your legislative networks on the fiscal year (FY) 04 tax reconciliation bill. Last week before leaving for the Memorial Day recess, the House and Senate passed the FY04 Tax Reconciliation Act. This concurrent resolution will cost $350 billionless than half of the Administration's request
Fiscal Relief for the States
- It includes $20 billion in aid to the States with $10 billion of that going for Medicaid relief. The remaining $10 billion going to state and local government will be distributed according to an agreed upon formula.
- It increases the child credit to $1,000, but does not increase the refundability of the credit. Therefore, a single mother with two children and $18,000 in income receives no benefit but would have received $375 if the refundability had been increased as well.
- There are 11.9 million children nationwide or one of every six children under age 17 who would have benefited from increasing the refundability of the child tax credit; millions of these children receive no benefit without this increase because their parents make too little money.
- Finally, though not part of the tax package, Congress did agreed to extend the Temporary Emergency Unemployment Compensation program through the end of the year. You recall that this program provides 13 additional weeks of unemployment compensate to those workers who have exhausted the 26 weeks of state assistance. However, Congress did not aid those workers who have exhausted both federal and state assistance and still cannot find work.