Future Of Earned Income Tax Credit In Doubt

Advocates for women's and children's issues gathered at the General Assembly yesterday. One bill they oppose is a change to the state's earned income tax credit.

 Low income families with children are eligible for a federal earned income tax credit that reduces their income taxes. In 2007, North Carolina passed it's own EITC, that's an additional five percent of what the federal tax credit is worth.

Poverty researcher Lucy Gorham from the non-profit MDC explains the proposed legislation would eliminate any portion of the tax credit that gets included in an income tax refund. Gorham notes it would effectively raise taxes on some of the poorest people in the state.

"There are other places where they could look for money. They have also proposed to reduce the corporate tax rate and not to address some corporate tax loopholes that have come up in reports of places where the state might be able to find more money."

About 800,000 North Carolina households are eligible for the state tax credit and receive an average of 90 dollars a year from it.
 

Link to proposed legislation