WASHINGTON -- Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, on Thursday proposed providing at least $3,000 per child to millions of American families, lending bipartisan support to President Joe Biden's push to expand child benefits.
Romney's proposal would provide $4,200 per year for every child up to the age of 6, as well as $3,000 per year for those 6 to 17. Senior Democrats are drafting legislation as part of their $1.9 trillion stimulus proposal that would provide $3,600 per year for every child up to the age of 6, as well as $3,000 for those 6 to 17.
The emergence of Romney's child benefits plan as Democrats prepare a similar effort could give the White House an opportunity to incorporate policies with bipartisan support into its relief package. Romney has said Biden's stimulus proposal is too expensive, meaning he may vote against the broader plan even if it includes much of his new child benefits proposal.
Romney's new plan, like the one being explored by senior Democrats, would provide the benefit monthly by depositing it directly into taxpayer bank accounts. Advocates for expanding child benefits say they will make an enormous dent in child poverty in the United States, though some conservative scholars say the benefits may discourage parents from pursuing employment. The extent of GOP support for Romney's proposal is unclear.
[CORONAVIRUS: Click here for our complete coverage » arkansasonline.com/coronavirus]
Unlike Democrats' plan, Romney's Family Security Act would be paid for, in part, by eliminating Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a welfare program, as well as other federal tax credits for children and working families. Many Democrats are likely to oppose this part of Romney's plan.
"We have not comprehensively reformed our family support system in nearly three decades, and our changing economy has left millions of families behind," said Romney, the GOP's 2012 presidential nominee, in a statement. "Now is the time to renew our commitment to families to help them meet the challenges they face as they take on the most important work any of us will ever do -- raising our society's children."
White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain reacted to the proposal Thursday, tweeting: "Really looking forward to see what SenatorRomney will propose here -- an encouraging sign that bipartisan action to reduce child poverty IS possible." Biden officials and Romney staff members discussed the plan after its release Thursday, according to one person who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversations.
The United States has among the highest rates of child poverty in the developed world, a trend exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. The nation provides less financial support to families with children than all but a few developed countries. That has led Democratic lawmakers such as Sens. Michael Bennet of Colorado and Sherrod Brown of Ohio to lead legislation to expand child benefits that command near-universal support among the Democratic caucus.
Their push is now gaining bipartisan momentum in part because of social conservatives such as Romney and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who have also expressed alarm about high levels of child poverty.
Some liberal Democrats said Romney's plan could be improved by maintaining the tax credits and welfare program it proposes repurposing to fund the new child benefit.
"It's misguided to undercut the policy's poverty-reducing impact by using deep cuts in other critical forms of support for low-income people to pay for it," said Sharon Parrott, president of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a Democratic-aligned think tank. "There are far better financing options that ask those who are doing the best to pitch in a little more."
Romney's plan would also not provide the benefit to those living in the United States without a Social Security number. In the 2017 tax law, the GOP stripped as many as 4 million immigrant filers from receiving the child tax credit -- which Romney envisions repurposing for his new proposal.