About the Cost-of-Living Refund


We are living in a time of record income inequality and volatility, where workers struggle to meet basic needs and achieve financial security. By modernizing the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), we can create a powerful and practical plan to help low-income and middle-class people.

One of the best policies to provide economic stability to working people, the EITC is our nation’s most effective anti-poverty policy, as a cash policy that gives people the tools to solve their own problems. Yet, in its current form, the EITC cannot fully address the needs of hard-working families in an economy shaped by low-wage work and high concentrations of wealth. Today, 57% of Americans can't afford a $500 emergency, with worse rates among people of color. A voter in an Arizona focus group said, “I’m one emergency away from financial ruin.”

A Cost-of-Living Refund will help Americans with the rising cost of living and housing. Learn more:

 
 
Community members at a rally for a Working Families Tax Credit (or Cost-of-Living Refund) in Washington State. (3/21/19)

Community members at a rally for a Working Families Tax Credit (or Cost-of-Living Refund) in Washington State. (3/21/19)

 
  • MODERNIZATIONS: While the Earned Income Tax Credit has been proven to be one of the most effective anti-poverty measures instituted, the Cost-of-Living Refund offers bold changes that draw on the benefits of the existing EITC and adjusts the policy to new challenges of today. Learn about expanding eligibility to family caregivers and students, monthly payments, simplified automatic filing to improve access, and how a modernized EITC works with an increased minimum wage.