Child poverty more than doubled last year
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The child poverty rate more than doubled in 2022 from a record low in 2021 because of the expiration of pandemic-era benefits, according to Census data out Tuesday.
Why it matters: A steep drop in childhood poverty back in 2021 was hailed as nothing short of miraculous, lifting 2.9 million children out of poverty, according to an estimate from the Census in May. The rebound is yet another reason Americans were less than thrilled with the economy last year.
What they're saying: Democrats, progressives and advocates for the poor highlighted the latest numbers to argue for a revival of the expanded child tax credit, which had families receiving monthly checks in 2021 of up to $300 per child.
- "This data once again highlights that poverty in our country isn't a personal failing, but rather a policy choice," Melissa Boteach, a vice president at the National Women's Law Center, said in a statement Tuesday.
- Critics of the tax credit argued the cash kept parents out of the workforce, but the labor force expanded in 2021 and 2022. And at least one paper found no evidence of an impact on the labor supply.
Of note: An analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities finds that if the child tax credit had been extended in 2022, about 3 million children would've been kept out of poverty — or more than half of the 5.2 million increase last year.
