Van Hollen Statement on the President's Plan to Help Middle-Class and Working Families Get Ahead

Statement

Today Maryland Congressman Chris Van Hollen, Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee, issued the following statement on the President's Plan to Help Middle-Class and Working Families Get Ahead:

"I applaud the President's plan, which seeks to give more help to working families and to reward work over wealth. It echoes the House Democrats' effort to grow the economy with more broadly shared prosperity, as we work to ensure that all families have the opportunity to get ahead, not just the wealthy few.

"The President's plan includes permanent extension of key tax provisions which help Americans work, raise their families, and go to college. Like the President, our Democratic Budget extended improvements to the earned income tax credit and the child tax credit, and called for a permanent and expanded American Opportunity Tax Credit. The President's plan and the Democratic Budget also both call for rewarding hard work by expanding the earned income tax credit for childless workers. It stands in stark contrast to Republican plans, which would cut these critical supports while giving tax cuts to the wealthiest few.

"In addition, the President and I share the priority of providing more help to working families. We can give tax relief to help address the unique costs faced by two-earner families, and do more to encourage Americans to save. With child care expenses eating up large portions of family budgets, we need to provide meaningful relief to all families, through direct help that reaches more of those eligible and expansion of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit. And we can do these in a responsible manner by closing special interest loopholes and by no longer favoring wealth over work in our tax code.

"President Obama and Democrats will keep fighting for a fair tax code that rewards people who earn their money through hard work, not just those making money off of money."

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