We're On Track To End Child Poverty By 2030

     The Child Tax Credit has existed for years, but the American Rescue Plan Act was the largest expansion of this tax cut for the middle class in American history. It increased the amount from $2,000 per child under 17 to $3,600 per child under six and $3,000 per child under 17 annually while also making the payments come monthly instead of after taxes are filed and making the funds refundable for single parents making $75,000 or less and families making $150,000 or less. Now, in the American Families Plan the Senate is working on, the Child Tax Credit expansion in the American Rescue Plan Act would be made permanent. We've already seen an impact, and it was bigger than expected by even the most optimistic: this alone reduced the number of children living in poverty from 14.2 million to 5.6 million, a decline of 61 percent in just a few months. This is the largest cut to child poverty in American history.

     Meanwhile, Democrats are fighting for a higher minimum wage. The functional minimum wage this year, for the first time in history, is on track to reach $15 an hour, while the average minimum for service workers just hit $15 an hour. President Biden raised the minimum wage for federal workers to $15 an hour, and we are currently considering a $10.10 minimum wage in Congress, which could get bipartisan support. Meanwhile, President Biden has created four million jobs in six months. America lost 10 million jobs during the pandemic, and we are on track to recovery these jobs fully during 2022. President Obama created 16 million jobs during his administration and President Clinton created 22 million; President Biden is on track to create more jobs in one term than Obama did in two, and, if he is reelected, will likely create more jobs in two terms than any president. We are also working to keep prices down with antitrust work in every major industry. More ethical businesses hiring more people for higher wages while prices get lower is a recipe for reducing child poverty.

     This is not the only concrete action the Senate is considering: expanded school meal programs, "baby bonds," free Pre-K for children and community college for the parents who need it most, and other landmark programs are in the works, while a Civilian Climate Corps and the Investment in Infrastructure and Jobs Act and countless other initiatives will, as I stated before, create more jobs for young people. Housing is going to get cheaper. Perhaps most significantly, Medicare may soon be allowed to negotiate the price of prescription drugs, which will save families countless thousands of dollars every year. Add in expanded affordable healthcare with millions of Americans enrolling in Obamacare, and we have a comprehensive, bold investment in reducing child poverty.

     We are the party of the New Deal and the Great Society, and we will never forget that as we Build Back Better. With these factors in mind, we are on track to end child poverty by 2030.