Push a Deal to Protect Key Tax Provisions for Low-Income Families Over the Finish Line

Because of the outstanding grassroots advocacy work of RESULTS volunteer advocates and others, there is a possibility  a major tax deal that will save key pro-work tax provisions for millions of low-income families – but we need your voice to push it over the finish line. Please call or email Congress to save key Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit (CTC) provisions TODAY.

It is particularly important for House Democrats to hear from constituents that support getting this deal done in the next 1-2 days. Here are some talking points you can tailor for your calls (can call toll-free: (855) 976-1895) and emails – ideally to the key tax staff, which you can find on the RESULTS Elected Officials page.

With a few days left in the Congressional session, it is imperative that Congress act to make the critical EITC and CTC provisions permanent in any tax agreement that moves forward. This issue is too important to wait until 2017, when new challenges may emerge that make it difficult or practically impossible to save the improvements and keep millions of working Americans from losing their tax credits. This year—when there is interest on both sides of the aisle in making permanent some of the tax credits that are routinely extended one or two years at a time—is the best opportunity to make the EITC and CTC improvements permanent as well. 

The consequences of inaction would be high for working families: if Congress fails to save the EITC and CTC improvements in time, [XX] children, and [XX people in your state] overall, will fall into or deeper into poverty and millions more will find it harder to meet their families’ basic needs.

As the negotiations over business tax extenders and the EITC and CTC continue, we urge the representative/senator to speak with his/her colleagues in the leadership and do everything he/she can to ensure that the EITC and CTC improvements are made permanent this year. Working families in our state are counting on the representative/senator to be their voice.

Be sure to customize your message with EITC and CTC statistics from your state before sending it. Find the number of people and children impacted in your state at: www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/state-fact-sheets-the-earned-income-and-child-tax-credits. We also urge you to include copies of any media that you have generated.

Then, urge people in your local Action Network and others you know to join in the effort by sending emails to Congress. Send the following message to them via e-mail and Facebook today:

America’s working families need your help. Congress is finalizing a tax bill that could preserve key tax provisions that help low-income families makes end meet, but they could also pass a bill that ignores these families and simply cuts taxes for big business. Make sure Congress puts working families first by making key provisions of the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit permanent in this tax bill. Use the RESULTS tax credit alert to send your message today: http://capwiz.com/results/issues/alert/?alertid=9823986.

RESULTS volunteer advocates have done amazing work pushing Congress to save key EITC and CTC provisions with your work with Congress and in local media with more than 86 published EITC/CTC pieces this year – and this work has made a big impact on the debate. There are many groups working to support a final tax deal that saves these key EITC and Child Tax Credit provisions, but with a lot left on its plate, Congress needs to hear from many people back home that this is a top priority.

Let’s make sure we bring this amazing effort to the finish line – call or email Congress today! And thank you for all that you do!

PS: There is still space available in this afternoon’s Vote to End Hunger webinar on how to get candidates to make ending hunger and poverty a priority. Register to join me and others this afternoon at 4 pm ET and learn how you can get involved. Can’t join today but want to get involved in making the end of poverty an election issue? Check out our work to shape 2016 election priorities: https://results.org/issues/results_and_the_2016_election/. And, to learn more about RESULTS and our work to end poverty in America and around the world, visit us at www.results.org.