Should single parents get less from the child tax credit than married couples?

Most families can expect to see monthly child tax credit payments beginning July 15, but for single-parent households, as NBC reported, an overlooked aspect of the American Rescue Plan will leave them with a smaller check than married households with the same income. Now a group of Democrats led by Rep. Katie Porter of California has introduced legislation to equalize the income cap for single and two-parent households. 

“No child should receive less nutritious food or less secure housing just because their parent isn’t married,” said Porter, a single mom of three school-age kids. “There’s no discount for single parents at grocery stores, child care centers, or doctors’ offices, yet the child tax credit gives less help to single-parent families.”

Given the way the tax credit is currently structured, single parents filing as heads of their household stop receiving the full benefit when their gross adjusted income hits $120,500 per year. The benefits don’t phase out for two-parent households until $150,000. The result is that a single parent of three making $130,000 per year gets less from the child tax credit than a two-parent household with the same number of children earning $150,000. Porter and others argue this is unfair.