Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
Senate-Passed Plan Preserves the Spirit of the EITC
The Senate-approved tax plan preserves a portion of the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which had earlier been slated for elimination. The credit would be 6 percent of the federal EITC, as opposed to 20 percent as the credit stands now.
“This measure preserves the spirit of the Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit,” said Gilda Z. Jacobs, president and CEO of the Michigan League for Human Services. May 2011.
Read the full press release here.
*More information at www.saveoureitc.com
Keeping Kids out of Poverty with the Michigan EITC
The Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit is an effective tool that encourages work and helps keep working families out of poverty. Unfortunately, a plan by Gov. Rick Snyder would reduce it from an average of $432 per family to $25 a child, to help pay for business tax cuts. The reduced amount will have no measurable impact on keeping kids out of poverty.
Gov. Rick Snyder has included child poverty as one of the indicators of Michigan’s economic strength on the MiDashboard.
Despite its effectiveness, legislative leaders have called for the elimination of this vital credit. Eliminating the state credit will tax 25,000 Michigan residents, including 14,000 children, into poverty and harm kids statewide.
Read the fact sheet on how the credit lifts 14,000 children out of poverty and helps kids in families statewide. Of the nearly 800,000 households claiming the EITC last year, most have children.
FIND OUT MORE BY GOING TO THE ADVOCACY WEBSITE: www.saveoureitc.com
— FACTS ABOUT THE EITC —
* New! Fact Sheet: The Michigan EITC and Taxes Paid by Working Families
* New! Chart: Michigan’s State and Local Taxes as a Percent of Income
* New! Chart: Sample Taxpayer Income Tax and EITC
* Benefit of the Michigan EITC for various income levels
* Estimates by county of the impact of the state EITC
* Fact Sheet: Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit
* EITC at work in legislative districts
— COMMENTARIES ABOUT THE EITC —
*New! Viewpoint in the Oakland Press on the EITC
*Press release: Michigan EITC supporters unveil videos, postcards
*League statement – Don’t Kill the Michigan EITC–It’s Just Not Fair
* Poll: Three out of four voters support EITC
*Detroit Free Press commentary
*Gilda Z. Jacobs commentary in the Grand Rapids Press
* Press release: Hurting Kids on Kids Count day
* Battle Creek Enquirer viewpoint on the EITC
* Read the League’s Jan. 13 statement
* League president defends EITC on WKAR’s Off the Record
* Letter to Gov. Snyder and lawmakers
* Michigan Catholic Conference on the EITC
* AARP statement on the Michigan EITC
Proposed tax plan hits poor people 10 times harder
Michigan has a regressive tax system, meaning that lower-income people pay a bigger share of their income in state and local taxes than higher-income people.
Gov. Rick Snyder’s plan would make it even more regressive, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a Washington D.C.-based nonpartisan think tank. In fact, the impact on Michigan’s poorest households will be more than 10 times greater than the impact on the wealthiest households.
Read the fact sheet and press release.
$25 Earned Income Tax Credit doesn’t make up for cuts
The deal announced by Lt. Gov. Brian Calley Wednesday to preserve a small portion of the MichiganEarned Income Tax Credit is a good step toward saving an important public policy tool in Michigan that keeps kids out of poverty.
It should be recognized, however, that even with the $25 per child credit and enhancements announced last week in the Homestead Property Tax Credit, working poor families will still be far behind.
Read the full press release here
*How low-income families lose under proposed tax changes
*How the proposed Homestead Property Tax Credit will work
Earned Income Credit Letter to Michigan’s Congressional delegation urging fair tax policy for low-income families The Michigan League for Human Services and 25 others signed a letter to the Michigan Congressional delegation urging that Congress permanently extend policies that support low- and middle-income families and encourage work. read more>>
Nov. 10, 2010 letter to lawmakers urging support for the Earned Income Tax Credit There are three reasons to support the Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit as good public policy that’s achieving its goals. read more>>
Michigan no longer among worst states for taxing the working poor Michigan’s Earned Income Tax Credit propelled the state off the list of the 10 worst states for taxing the working poor, a new report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities concludes. — Nov 4, 2009 press release
Michigan’s State Earned Income Tax Credit: Year One With the first tax year for Michigan’s new Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) now over, data show that approximately 702,000 filers received the credit. — Sept 09 read more>>
Support the Earned Income Tax Credit The Michigan League for Human Services on Aug. 19, 2009 sent lawmakers a letter urging their support of the Earned Income Tax Credit. The tax credit is an important economic tool that rewards work and boosts local economies. Click here to read the letter.
Fact Sheet: Michigan’s New Earned Income Tax Credit On September 22, 2006, Governor Granholm signed into law a state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for Michigan. This new tax credit, passed with bipartisan support, will help working families keep more of their paycheck. – Updated Aug 2009 Click here for fact sheet.
Economic benefits of the Earned Income Tax Credit in Michigan A new report by the Anderson Economic Group underscores the value of the Earned Income Tax Credit in a tough economy. Not only does it reward work, it stimulates the economy, generating $1.67 in economic activity for every $1 in tax credits. Aug. 13, 2009
Read more>>
The Michigan League for Human Services is a partner in the Statewide Earned Income Tax Credit Coalition. Made up of statewide and local organizations and public agencies, the coalition is committed to supporting work and reducing poverty for Michigan’s low to moderate income individuals and families through outreach on available tax credits and refunds, including the federal and state earned income credit. It also promotes asset building and financial security. The coalition is funded by the Michigan Department of Human Services and is administered under contract by the Michigan Poverty Law Program, the Michigan League for Human Services, and Michigan State University. — April 09 Visit the websit of the Statewide EITC Coalition by clicking here.
Fact Sheet: Michigan’s Earned Income Tax Credit On September 22, 2006, Governor Granholm signed into law a state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for Michigan. This new tax credit, passed with bipartisan support, will help working families keep more of their paycheck. — Updated Jan 09 Click here for fact sheet To read the press release about efforts to freeze the EITC click here>>
Rewarding Work and Helping Families: Why a State Earned Income Credit Makes Sense for Michigan Seventeen states and the District of Columbia have established an Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to reward the work of low and middle-income families. This analysis outlines the advantages of enacting a Michigan earned income tax credit. It draws on three principles: the need for tax relief for Michigan’s working families, the effectiveness of the federal EITC, and the feasibility of a refundable Michigan EITC. – (Revised July 2005) read more>>
