Maribel Cruz's parents face a critical situation in their economy due to the coronavirus pandemic.
His father was rested from his job and his mother suffered from reduced working hours. Both are undocumented. This reason prevents them from qualifying for federal aid.
Cruz said that her family, like many in the country, is a mixed status home. Her parents are undocumented, she is a beneficiary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and her two brothers – aged 28 and 26 – are US citizens.
He explained that when his siblings were minors, his parents received a refund of their taxes for American children. But since they turned 18, that extra money has gone back to zero.
Cruz, who is 30, works for the Long Beach Immigrant Rights Coalition, which advocates for immigrant rights.
It was there that he learned about the California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC), a reimbursable amount in cash for skilled Californians with low to moderate incomes.
"I found out what that means in terms of how it helps families," Cruz said. "But (undocumented) working families who have American citizen children cannot receive that credit."
This is because undocumented workers file their taxes with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) which is not valid for work, only to file taxes.
Seeing that many families were left out of the tax credit because of their immigration status, the young woman decided to advocate – together with the coalition – for the right to allow workers with ITINs to receive reimbursements.
"Many people believe that by having an ITIN they cannot get anything, but when you explain to them that it is part of their taxes and that it is a refund of the work they do, then they like the idea of approving the CalEITC," Cruz said.
Failed attempt
Sasha Feldstein, manager of economic justice policy at the California Immigrant Policy Center, said it came very close to adding CalEITC to the state budget last year but failed.
"We got it in the Senate budget proposal and in the Assembly budget proposal, but it was not in the final budget," he explained. “That is why we are fighting now. Too bad it was not included last year because if (undocumented) taxpayers had been included they could now receive their refund checks. ”
Many of these immigrants, whose lack of income is latent, face difficult situations since they cannot ask for help from the government and depend on the charity of private organizations and groups.
When CalEITC began in 2015, the income of almost 385,000 people increased, all with some kind of legal status in the country, who received nearly $ 200 million of the loan. By 2019, more than 2 million people claimed the credit, making a total of almost $ 395 million.
California has an undocumented immigrant working hand that generates about $ 3.2 billion, Feldstein said.
He added that "our estimates are that if the ITIN number were included in the CalEITC, it would benefit around 600,000 people, which includes 200,000 children."
Therefore, California organizations continue the movement to advocate for CalEITC. On April 14 there was a “Day of Action” when activists lobbied virtual and a letter a group of caucuses recently sent to California Governor Gavin Newsom asking him to support the Cal EITC.
Feldstein said it is important to emphasize that the inclusion of the undocumented in CalEITC has always been important but COVID-19 makes this issue more important than ever because many communities are not eligible for financial aid such as federal stimulus check or insurance. unemployment.
“However, many of these undocumented workers are on the front lines of this crisis, so we want to emphasize that CalEITC is an efficient and effective strategic way to ensure that we receive money in family pockets so that they can support themselves and sa u family ”, Feldstein stressed.
To learn more about the CalEITC and how much you and your family could qualify visit: caleitc4me.org/
