Charleston Gazette-Mail – If you like the idea of rewarding people who work, then you probably like the Earned Income Tax Credit. Read
It is no wonder that both Democrats and Republicans support it. It only goes to people who work. Parents qualify for a higher credit than childless people. It phases out as incomes rise. Because it is refundable, working people may qualify for a refund even if they did not make enough money during the year to owe taxes or to be required to file a tax return. It has been expanded several times to help more people, recently as part of the 2009 economic stimulus.
Those expanded parts are set to expire in 2017, and they are worth saving.
More than 26 million low- to middling-income households will get the credit this year, putting $60 billion back in their hands to pay bills, buy groceries, maintain property, buy cars and everything else people do to take care of themselves and their families. In West Virginia, that’s about 160,000 households as of 2012, bringing $340 million to working West Virginians.
