American Family Act
Sponsored By: Senator Michael Bennet
Introduced
Summary
Would create a refundable monthly child tax credit that would send recurring payments to families with qualifying children. It would also establish a separate $500 credit for other dependents and set up monthly advance payments and eligibility rules.
Show full summary
- Families with children: Would provide a monthly allowance based on a $300 base amount with larger payments for younger children and a much larger first-month amount for newborns under one month.
- Families with other dependents: Would offer a $500 credit per specified dependent, with income phaseouts beginning at $300,000 for most filers and steeper reductions above higher thresholds for joint filers.
- Recipients and delivery systems: Would create monthly advance payments and a presumptive eligibility process for new or unstable households, require a multilingual online portal, direct electronic payments when possible, protect payments from many federal offsets, and include a two-month lookback rule for garnishment exemptions.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 2 mixed.
New $500 credit for other dependents
If enacted, the bill would create a $500 annual credit for each dependent who is not a specified child for any month of the year. The $500 would be prorated if the dependent turns 18 during the year. The credit would be reduced by $50 for each $1,000 (or fraction) your modified AGI is above your filing-status threshold: $400,000 for married filing jointly, $200,000 for married filing separately, and $300,000 for other filers.
Bigger monthly child payments for families
If enacted, the bill would create a new monthly child payment instead of the old annual credit. Base monthly amounts would be $300 for each child age 6 or older, $360 for each child under 6, and $2,400 for a child under one month. The $300 base would be indexed for inflation for months after Dec. 31, 2025. Monthly payments would be cut in two stages when your modified AGI is over set thresholds (initial and secondary thresholds vary by filing status). The bill would not allow the prior annual child tax credit for tax years starting after Dec. 31, 2024.
Monthly advance payments and protections
If enacted, the bill would let the IRS make monthly advance child payments while you are presumptively eligible. The agency must estimate payments using a reference month and year and offer an online portal to enroll. Payments would be made by electronic transfer and include unique ACH coding. Monthly amounts would be refundable for months when you (or your spouse) lived in the U.S. or Puerto Rico more than half the month. The bill would protect most advance payments from garnishment and require annual notices. Your annual credit would be reduced by the total monthly advances, and the IRS can raise your tax if advances exceed the allowed credit when the excess is due to fraud, reckless disregard, or income/filing changes.
Rules for qualifying children and penalties
If enacted, the bill would require you to list each child's name and TIN on your tax return to claim the credit. The credit is denied if the child's or your TIN was issued after the return due date. A 'specified child' test would require the child to live with you more than half the month, be under 18 at month-end, be younger than you, and receive unpaid care from you. The bill sets tie-breaker rules when multiple people claim the same child. It would bar people from getting the credit for 10 years after fraud or for 2 years after reckless or intentional disregard.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Michael Bennet
CO • D
Cosponsors
Cory Booker
NJ • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Raphael Warnock
GA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Catherine Cortez Masto
NV • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Richard Durbin
IL • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Ron Wyden
OR • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Angela Alsobrooks
MD • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Tammy Baldwin
WI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Richard Blumenthal
CT • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Lisa Blunt Rochester
DE • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Maria Cantwell
WA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Christopher Coons
DE • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Tammy Duckworth
IL • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
John Fetterman
PA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Ruben Gallego
AZ • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Kirsten Gillibrand
NY • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Maggie Hassan
NH • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Martin Heinrich
NM • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Mazie Hirono
HI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Timothy Kaine
VA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Mark Kelly
AZ • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Andy Kim
NJ • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Angus King
ME • I
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Amy Klobuchar
MN • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM]
NM • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Edward Markey
MA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Jeff Merkley
OR • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Christopher Murphy
CT • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Patty Murray
WA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Alex Padilla
CA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Gary Peters
MI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
John Reed
RI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Jacky Rosen
NV • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Bernie Sanders
VT • I
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Brian Schatz
HI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Adam Schiff
CA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Charles Schumer
NY • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Jeanne Shaheen
NH • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Elissa Slotkin
MI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Tina Smith
MN • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Chris Van Hollen
MD • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Mark Warner
VA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Elizabeth Warren
MA • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Peter Welch
VT • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Sheldon Whitehouse
RI • D
Sponsored 4/9/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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