Assembly Member Santiago & Community Leaders Announce Legislation to Put up to $1,083 in the Pocket of 700,000 more Families Each Year

(Los Angeles, CA) – Assembly Member Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) hosted a press conference this morning where he and community leaders unveiled AB 1128. This bill is sponsored by the California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC) Coalition, to expand the poverty-fighting and equity-building Young Child Tax Credit (YCTC) to all CalEITC-eligible households with dependents. AB 1128 would provide 700,000 additional working families with up to $1,083 each year.

View press conference livestream here:

Many CalEITC-eligible families with older children no longer qualify for the Young Child Tax Credit. This is particularly concerning given the recent failure of Congress to reauthorize the much-needed enhancements to the federal Child Tax Credit and federal Earned Income Tax Credit, which dramatically lowered the child poverty rate during the COVID-19 pandemic. As this and other pandemic-era relief ends, California must step up support for families with children who are struggling to make ends meet and to prevent a significant number of families from falling back into poverty, advocates say. 

"Day after day, families are forced to make gut-wrenching tradeoffs, whether to put food on the table or gas in the car," said Assembly Member Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles). "AB 1128 offers hope for Californians who are struggling to make ends meet by providing much-needed financial relief that puts money back in their pockets to reduce the risk of children falling back into poverty while promoting greater economic stability. California must take action before families are forced into more and harder, impossible tradeoffs."

“We fully support President Biden’s call for Congress to restore the expanded Child Tax Credit that slashed child poverty to historically low rates during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Pete Manzo President & CEO of United Ways of California. “At the same time, California must do more to support families grappling with the high cost of living using the proven tool of state tax credits like the YCTC.” 

“These are hard-working families struggling to make ends meet on less than $30,000 a year. California can and must step up to support all children, regardless of age and household income,” said Mónica Lazo, Policy Manager, Golden State Opportunity. “We know that the costs of raising a child don’t stop at six years old, so our support shouldn’t stop either.”

“Expanding the Young Child Tax Credit is a game-changer in our collective effort to end child poverty. I know first-hand as a parent that children do not become less expensive when they turn 6, and AB 1128 addresses a major equity issue by making the YCTC available to all families with qualifying children,” said Shimica Gaskins, President & CEO, GRACE/End Child Poverty. “We applaud Assemblymember Santiago for continuing to lead efforts to maximize the availability of refundable tax credits we know are proven to fight poverty and give families much-needed financial freedom.”

BACKGROUND:

Rising inflation has resulted in higher costs of necessities like food, gas, and housing for families- stretching household budgets to the breaking point. Sustained inflation harms Californians with the lowest incomes the most. In 2022, nearly 2 in 3 households (67%) with annual incomes under $35,000 struggled to afford basic expenses. As Californians with low-incomes continue to bear the greatest burden from these economic conditions, it is imperative for the state to double down on CalEITC and YCTC protections and strengthen the social safety net.

AB 1128 would expand the YCTC to three types families with low-incomes:

• Children ages 6-18
• Children ages 19-23 who are students
• Children of any age with permanent and total disabilities

In addition to expanding the YCTC, the CalEITC Coalition is calling on Governor Newsom and legislative leaders to support families who are struggling by:

• Raising the minimum CalEITC credit to $300 provided by AB 1498 (Gipson),
• Ensuring investments in tax credit outreach and free tax preparation/Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) are maintained in the state budget.

Assembly Member Miguel Santiago is the Chair of the Assembly Committee on Governmental Organization. He represents the 54th District composed of the cities of Los Angeles, Commerce, Montebello, and Vernon.

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