Governor Ned Lamont (D) and other Connecticut public officials announced on Thursday that families will soon get access to the state’s new child tax credit.
About 300,000 postcards went into the mail yesterday advising families of how to apply for the relief, which comes at $250 per child and up to $750 per family. Qualifying recipients include single tax filers with children and with income under $100,000 annually as well as couples with children filing jointly who make under $200,000 yearly in total. Those with incomes above those levels may, however, succeed in securing some relief.
Parents or guardians interested in the rebate may apply through the Department of Revenue Services.
The program comes at a cost of about $150 million to the state.
State Representative Sean Scanlon (D-Guilford) said the tax break comes at a crucial time as inflation rages.
“What we’re doing in this budget, and what we’re doing with the child tax rebate, is to say, ‘We hear you, we want to help you and we are helping,’” he said. “And that’s something that each and every one of us should be proud of in Connecticut – that we passed a budget that met the moment to meet the needs of the people of Connecticut, to say to them, ‘We understand that costs are rising and that we’re doing something about it to help your family out.’”
Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin (D) said families representing about 30,000 children in his city and 650,000 kids across the Constitution State will be able to receive the tax break. He said that the example of the federal child tax credit showed how useful this kind of targeted tax relief could be for families.
“We saw, over this past year, the power of the child tax credit that was passed on the federal level,” he said. “We saw how many tens of thousands of kids were lifted up out of poverty, how many families – including middle-class families – were able to just make ends meet a little bit better because of that tax credit.”
Bronin said one in seven children in the metropolitan area struggle with either food insecurity or hunger.
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Bradley Vasoli is managing editor of The Connecticut Star. Follow Brad on Twitter at @BVasoli. Email tips to [email protected].
