N.Y. Catholic Conference backs Hochul’s Child Tax Credit expansion proposal

NEW YORK – The New York State Catholic Conference has applauded Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposed child tax credit expansion, citing the “important relief” it would provide to an estimated 1.6 million New York families and 2.75 million children.

The proposal, announced Jan. 6, would expand the Empire State Child Tax Credit to give eligible New York families an annual tax credit of up to $1,000 per child under age four and up to $500 per child ages four through 16, according to the governor’s office. Currently, eligible New York families can receive up to $330 per child.

The New York State Catholic Conference (NYSCC), which represents the bishops of New York State in public policy matters and has long advocated for expanding the child tax credit, said the proposal is “a powerful way to walk with moms in need, support working families, and help lift children out of poverty.”

“Now more than ever, it is imperative that we address the affordability crisis to help parents as they raise their children,” Kristen Curran, director of government relations for the NYSCC, said in a Jan. 7 statement. “We urge all lawmakers to lift up the most vulnerable. We are strengthened as a community and state.”

Curran added that Hochul “can count on the strong support” of the NYSCC on the proposal. Households earning up to $200,000 would be eligible for the credit, with the full credit being available to jointly filing households with an income up to $110,000, according to the governor’s office, which touted that the average credit given out to families will double from $472 to $943.

The governor said that a family of four with a toddler and school-age child and a household income up to $110,000 would receive a credit of $1,500 per year — “representing nearly $1,000 more per year than what that family receives under the current program.”

“From groceries to strollers to kids’ clothes, the cost of living and raising a family is still too damn high — and that’s why we’re proposing a massive increase in New York’s child tax credit,” Hochul said in a Jan. 6 statement. “As New York’s first mom governor, I know how hard it can be for parents to make ends meet — and I’ll never stop fighting to make New York more affordable for every family.”

Currently, New York is one of 16 states that offers some kind of child tax credit. If approved by the legislature, the credit expansion will be phased in over two years — with households with children under four eligible for their $1,000 credit for the 2025 tax year and those with children over four eligible for the $500 credit for the 2026 tax year, according to the governor’s office.

State legislators from both sides of the aisle have praised the proposal. Kate Breslin, the president and CEO of the New York-based Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy, also called it a “welcome step” toward reducing child poverty in the state.

“Allowing child poverty to exist is a policy choice, as is investing in child poverty solutions,” Breslin said in a statement. “We applaud Governor Hochul for making a policy choice that will begin to reduce child poverty and uplift other New York families struggling to make ends meet.”