Do the right thing, senators

What does the United States look like when we can’t take care of our most vulnerable — the people we are supposed to protect and nurture?

Child poverty is not only the responsibility of families but of our government. On Jan. 31, Congress passed a new tax bill by an overwhelming bipartisan vote (357 to 70) that expands the Child Tax Credit (CTC) for low-income families (H.R. 7024).

Thank you to Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Weston, Maria Elvira Salazar of Miami, and others who voted to support all our Florida families.

Estimates are that families earning less than $60,000 could see their CTC increase an average of $900 per year. This will make it easier for millions of parents to pay rent and put food on the table. This does not increase unemployment, add to the deficit or give benefits to undocumented immigrants, despite false claims to the contrary.

Prior child tax credit expansion bills in 2018 and in the 2021 American Rescue Plan worked to decrease overall childhood poverty when they were fully enacted. As we have seen, every time these bills expire, child poverty rates skyrocket.

We need the U.S. Senate to continue this incremental progress we are making on this issue, but some senators think this modest expansion is too generous. They want to cut back the CTC provisions in the bill while leaving tax breaks for corporations untouched.

It is refreshing to see Congress come together to help kids. We can’t waste it. I urge senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott to pass the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act — now.

Jannai Doyle, Sunrise