LANSING, Mich. – Recent polling of likely 2024 voters in Michigan, conducted by Impact Research for Michigan Future, Inc., finds strong support for a $1 billion Working Parents Tax Cut (WPTC) to help parents raising young children afford household necessities including child care. When given details of the proposal, 76 percent of Michiganders support enactment of a one-billion-dollar tax cut for working parents to pay for necessities like groceries, housing, and child care – while planning for the future.      

The poll, conducted in March, found that Michiganders – across party lines; across media markets; across those who are raising children and those who are not; and across those who meet income eligibility requirements and those who don't – overwhelmingly believe that putting more money in the pockets of working parents would do more to help them keep up with the cost of living than increased funding for state programs like child care and housing. 

“A working parents tax cut unites Michiganders," said Lou Glazer, president of Michigan Future, Inc. “They agree that there is no program that the state can administer that has the scale or impact that the Working Parents Tax Cut has. Michiganders agree that families know best how to spend their money and by providing them with this tax cut, we would empower parents to make the best decisions they can for themselves and their children.” 

The proposal is a fully refundable tax credit of $5,000 for children under age three, and $2,500 for children from age three up to six years old. To qualify, a household needs earnings of at least $10,000 per year from work and must meet Earned Income Tax Credit income thresholds, roughly up to $64,000 per year depending on family size. There is a limit of three children per family for the tax cut. More than 250,000 Michigan children under the age of six live in WPTC eligible households. 

“The Working Parents Tax Cut is an A+ policy proposal when it comes to voter support,” said Kevin Akins, a partner at Impact Research. “A large majority of Michigan voters from both sides of the aisle are united around this tax cut proposal, voicing levels of bipartisan support that are rarely found in the current political environment.” 

“Young children need a lot of love, lots of spaces to learn and plenty of resources to ensure they thrive,” said Angelique Power, a member of the Michigan Future, Inc. Board of Directors. “Money for hard working families to invest more in their kids will have a multiplier effect on their educational outcomes and subsequently on the future prosperity of our state. It is gratifying to see that so many Michiganders from all backgrounds agree that this is what is needed now.” 

The poll of 500 likely Michigan general election voters was conducted from March 5-10, 2024 on an online and text-to-web survey. The margin of error for the full sample is +/- 4.4% at the 95% level of confidence and higher for subgroups. Click here to view a memo from Impact Research for more information about the poll. 

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About Michigan Future Inc.
Michigan Future Inc. is a non-partisan, non-profit organization. Our mission is to be a source of new ideas on how Michigan can succeed as a world class community in a knowledge-driven economy. Its work is funded by Michigan foundations.