Panama Canal Commission Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000

Asked Congress to establish a national child poverty reduction target in the United States by passing the CHILD POVERTY REDUCTION ACT (S. 643/H.R. 1558). Urged Sec. Yellen to use existing authority to gather Treasury data about the scope of the problem and to waive offsets where authorized, and to work with the Administration and Congress to develop more complete solutions for families who receive some or all of their CTC and EITC payments through tax refunds but are at risk of having those refunds withheld for government debts. The Adoptee Citizenship Act recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives as an amendment to the America COMPETES Act. Asked for inclusion of an intact Adoptee Citizenship Act amendment in the final negotiated bill package to change the effective date of the Child Citizen Act of 2000 (CCA), ensuring that internationally adopted individuals-regardless of age-have the same basic citizenship rights as their parents biologically born and domestically adopted children. Urged Congress to focus on the needs of the families and children being squeezed by inflation and make extending the expanded monthly Child Tax Credit (CTC). In particular, Congress must not extend tax breaks for big corporations without also delivering real relief for families by extending the CTC, including to immigrant children, as a step toward a permanent child allowance.