As a longtime advocate of both the federal and state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) it was pretty frustrating to hear Sen.-elect Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, call the state EITC a “welfare giveaway” during an interview on WKAR’s Off the Record program.

For the record—the EITC is a federal and state tax credit that is given only to those who work for a living. It is not a handout. In fact, it is helping more than 755,000 working families across the state, and 16,000 working families in Sen.-elect Jones’ district in Allegan, Barry and Eaton counties. Nearly one in seven filers in the senator-elect’s district claimed the EITC.

The state EITC (pdf) is modeled after the federal EITC. Those who qualify for the federal EITC also qualify for the state credit that is 20 percent of the federal credit. 

The state EITC was enacted through a bipartisan effort in Michigan, and has broad support as a tool that rewards work and helps hardworking families. It is a successful anti-poverty, pro-work strategy with a proven track record.  One big fan of the EITC was President Ronald Reagan. “Giving a leg up to those struggling to move up is what America is all about,’’ Reagan said. 

The EITC is also shown to be an effective way to stimulate the economy.  A study last year by The Anderson Economic Group estimates that for every dollar of EITC received, $1.67 is generated in new economic activity in local communities. If Sen.-elect Jones were to deny the credit to 16,000 working families in his district he would, in turn, harm small businesses in Grand Ledge, Eaton Rapids, Allegan,
Holland and elsewhere in the 24^th District where these families spend their money.

Michigan has $35 billion in tax code spending (pdf) (credits, deductions, exemptions, etc.). Much of this spending is through business tax credits that were approved decades ago and have never been examined for their effectiveness in fulfilling a useful public purpose. Sen.-elect Jones, and others who would scale back or eliminate the state EITC, have much to choose from in the tax code in order to generate revenue.

Unfortunately, he has targeted the very credit that has been effective in helping lower- and moderate-income working families keep their heads above water during the worst recession since the Great Depression.

November 24th, 2010 Posted to Blog: Factually Speaking,Tax Policy | Comments (1)

Today the U.S. Census Bureau released new data from the Current Population Survey which gives us a look at what happened to household income, health insurance and poverty rates in 2009. As expected, things were worse in 2009 than they were in 2008 on both the national and state level.

Nationally, the two-year (2008-2009) median household income was $49,945 which is a fall of 3.2 percent in one year and a drop of 4.5 percent from 1999-2000 (when put into 2009 numbers). The one-year poverty rate moved from 13.2 percent to 14.3 percent, an increase of 3.7 million people.

For Michigan, the numbers are not surprising. The state’s median household income fell and poverty increased. Between 2008 and 2009, the poverty rate moved from 13 percent to 14 percent. Median household income was $47,797, using 2008-2009 two-year average numbers. This is a decline of 7 percent from 2006-2007 to 2008-2009 and of just over 17.5 percent from 1999-2000.

Additionally, while Michigan is still below the national average in the percentage of people under age 65 without health insurance, this figure still increased to 14.4 percent, or 1.3 million people.

Today’s data release only confirms what we already knew and what so many families have been experiencing: income has been falling, fewer people have employer-based health insurance, and more people are struggling to afford day-to-day necessities. In addition, though Michigan’s rate of those with health insurance coverage is still much higher than the national average, more individuals and families are losing coverage due to unemployment. The increase in the number of those without health insurance further illustrates the need for federal health care reform and including the provisions that will take effect next week.

Despite the bad news, things could have been much worse without the federal Recovery Act which helped create thousands of jobs in Michigan and helped keep at least that many people out of poverty. With that in mind, Congress should act to support the extension of key Recovery Act changes that help low-income families, such as the expanded benefits for low-income, working families through the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and preserving the refundable Child Tax Credit. Also, Congress should act to preserve funding for the Emergency TANF Contingency Fund which is scheduled to end on September 30.

Moreover, these new data should send a message to the Michigan Legislature that now is not the time to further decrease support for safety net programs, which help Michigan families make ends meet.

More detailed information will be coming on September 28 when the Census Bureau releases its 2009 American Community Survey data. These data, however, give us a preview of what is to come with that release.

-Jacqui Broughton