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Policy Priority
THE TAX CODE

Child Tax Credit

Overview

The Child Tax Credit (CTC) helps qualifying parents with children under the age of 17 offset the cost of everyday household expenses.

The CTC is designed to ensure that the tax code reflects the fact that families have more expenses and less disposable income than individuals and couples with the same income who don’t have children. Parents can use this credit for any expense, even those unrelated to the cost of raising children.

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Resources

Resource

FFYF Capsule Collection: Tax Policy and Child Care

July 12, 2025

In A Nutshell With two-thirds of children ages five and under living in homes where all available parents are working, child care is not optional for most families – it’s …

Resource

The First Five Things to Know About: The Britt-Kaine Bipartisan Child Care Plan

March 5, 2025

First Introduced: July 2024 Reintroduced: March 2025.  Parents want to make child care choices that best support their family’s individual needs and their child’s development. This is especially true for …

Resource

Child Care and the Federal Tax Code

February 18, 2025

Millions of families across the United States need child care. Yet for too many, child care is hard to find and even harder to afford. Congress can lead the way. …

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Updates

News

Research Finds Preschool Enrollment Can Increase Parent Income

August 6, 2025

Preschool enrollment has the potential to substantially impact parents’ incomes. Parents’ Earnings and the Returns to Universal Pre-Kindergarten, a study on the economic impact of universal pre-kindergarten (UPK) enrollment in …

News

Head Start Announcement: New Supplemental Funding Available to Boost Nutrition Services

August 5, 2025

On July 29th, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announced the availability of one-time supplemental funding with the goal of promoting healthy eating and improving nutrition services for children …


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