Denver – Today, Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet highlighted new data from the U.S. Department of the Treasury showing that 1,024,000 Colorado kids received expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) payments in August as compared to 992,000 in July — an increase of 32,000 Colorado kids. Eligible families also received an average payment of $425, up $5 from last month. In total, over $254 million was distributed to Colorado families this August.
“I’m glad to see this meaningful increase in the number of Colorado families receiving their advance Child Tax Credit payments,” said Bennet. “This is the most transformative policy to come out of Washington in generations. We have to continue doing everything we can to ensure every eligible household receives their payments.”
“We lived in Denver for 20 years but relocated to Garfield County to be closer to our kids and grandkids to help out with child care. Our son and daughter-in-law work in schools in the Roaring Fork School District and have three young children. We deeply appreciate the improved Child Tax Credit because it will help our kids cover the cost of child care, pay off the childbirth for their two-year-old, and pay for a ER visit for their child with Epilepsy,” said India and Darrell from Garfield County.
“The Child Tax Credit means so much to our family. When the pandemic hit, my daughters’ school closed, and I had to stop working to care for them for several months. That caused us financial strain, and this tax credit will help us as we recover. Raising children is expensive for so many families, and I hope lawmakers expand the Child Tax Credit permanently,” said Christa from Denver County.
“The expanded Child Tax Credit monthly payments will give parents and guardians the chance to take a breath. We have a lot of families that are food insecure. We have a lot of areas in our community that are off the food grid, so access is not easy. The Child Tax Credit could help parents cover the cost of nutritious food for their kids and family,” said Monique Marez, Coordinator, Pueblo Food Project.
More stories about the effect the expanded CTC is having on Colorado communities are available HERE.
Bennet has championed the expansion of the CTC for years. In March 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law a one-year expansion of the CTC, based on Bennet’s American Family Act, in the American Rescue Plan Act. This expansion has the potential to cut nationwide child poverty nearly in half this year and benefit 90% of American children.
In his American Families Plan, Biden proposed permanent full refundability of the CTC, as well as extending the enhanced CTC value and monthly payments through 2025. The president also committed to working with Congress to make the full, expanded CTC permanent. Bennet and his colleagues continue to push for a permanent expansion of the Child Tax Credit in the Build Back Better package.