Michigan Legislature Votes to Expand Earned Income Tax Credit for Low & Moderate Income Families!

By MUUSJN on Sunday, January 29th, 2023

MUUSJN Submitted Testimony In Senate Supporting This Tax Cut

Dear Friends:

Today was a red letter day for low and moderate income Michigan families, The Michigan Senate and the Michigan House rapidly passed bills that would expand the Earned Income Tax Credit. This is legislation that Governor Gretchen Whitmer, in her state of the state address on Wednesday, called the “Working Families Tax Credit”.

The new bills would expand the amount of state match that Michigan would pay to supplement the federal income tax credit from 6% to 30%. Both the House and the Senate legislation would give the bills immediate effect and would expand the tax credit to low and moderate income working families from 6% up to 30% of the federal rate.

An example of what this state benefit increase could mean: A single mother earning $17,000 per year who has two children would receive $350 from the current credit. Expanding the credit to 30% of the federal credit would mean that she’d receive about $1,700. A married couple with no children would only be eligible if they earned less than $22,610 in 2022. But a couple with three kids would be eligible for the credit it they earned less than $57,187/year.

Governor Whitmer, who made this one of her priorities in 2023, is expected to sign this legislation. Last year, MUUSJN agreed to work for this goal in 2023 and joined a statewide EITC coalition.

Here’s part of MUUSJN’s testimony given to the Senate Housing and Human Services Committee earlier this week:

“One of the core principles of Unitarian Universalism is that each person should be treated with dignity. We support SB-3 because it would support low-income working people who often struggle with purchasing food, paying rent, buying clothes for their children and paying their utility bills. Increasing Michigan matching funds for the federal EITC from 6% to 30% will help families live with greater dignity.”

Category: News | Tags: , , , , ,