Senator Mitt Romney (R., Utah) on Thursday unveiled a proposal for a monthly child allowance, in which most parents of children younger than six would receive $350 and parents of kids ages six to 17 would receive $250.
Romney’s Family Security Act is similar to a Democratic plan to increase the child tax credit from $2,600 to $3,600 as part of Biden’s coronavirus relief legislation. Democrats want to boost the tax credit, make it “fully refundable” so that lower-income parents qualify, and have the Internal Revenue Service disburse the payments in advance on a monthly basis, essentially creating a child allowance through tax code.
In contrast, Romney’s proposal would distribute benefits from the Social Security Administration and the new payments would take the place of several existing tax benefits, including the child tax credit and the deduction for state and local taxes, as well as the entire Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.
Doing away with the existing benefits would likely be a hard sell among Democrats.
Under Romney’s proposal, expecting parents would be eligible to receive payments beginning four months before their child is born. Benefits would be limited to $1,250 per month and couples with combined incomes above $400,000 would get less. An estimated 90 percent of households with children would qualify.
Romney’s proposal would reduce child poverty by nearly a third, according to an analysis by the Niskanen Center, a moderate think tank that separately helped both the Democrats and Romney with their plans. The Democrats’ tax credit plan would reduce child poverty by 39 percent, the analysis showed.
If Romney’s idea were implemented without cuts to other assistance programs, it would reduce child poverty by 40 percent.
Romney’s aides told the Huffington Post that the proposal is aimed at encouraging child-rearing, rather than slashing poverty.
“We simply think this is about making a national commitment to America’s families,” an aide said.
His aides said the Utah Republican, who has five kids himself, hoped Democrats would consider incorporating his proposal into their COVID relief bill.