OPINION:
This month, hundreds of thousands of families across our nation will experience a life-altering transition: welcoming a new child into the world and taking on the beauty and challenge of parenting. For others, a tragic health incident will significantly change the rhythm and tenor of day-to-day life. These moments are weighty, impacting almost every area of life, including work.
For decades, our nation’s small businesses — along with federal, state and local governments — have responded to these moments by providing a web of family and medical leave policies designed to help families maintain a connection to income and work, ensuring they have the resources they need to continue with their lives and careers.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 added a powerful tool to these supports: a tax mechanism often called the Section 45S tax credit. It provides employers who want to give their employees paid leave a means of doing so without threatening the viability of the business or risking future layoffs. Businesses continue to pay wages to their employees while the workers take time off to care for a new child or a sick loved one, and the federal government steps in to reduce employers’ tax liability to offset some of the costs. It’s the ultimate (and rare) win-win-win for all involved.
But employers receiving this credit — and the millions benefiting from it — face a looming cliff. Without congressional action, the entire credit will expire in less than eight months.
Recently, dozens of employers from the Christian Employers Alliance sent a joint letter to congressional leaders underscoring the importance of the credit and urging representatives to take immediate action to extend the credit’s authorization timeline and expand it.
Families in transition deserve our support. Employers across the country are doing their part and stand ready to continue. We should all call on Congress to do the same.
MARGARET IUCALANO
President, Christian Employers Alliance
Washington
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