Hi Kat,

   Not all single parents get the $400. Child must be born between now and 1985. So people with kids 16 and up - don't get the break. I fail to understand the logic. If you claim a child - you should get the benefit. So both mine are 1986 vintage - so no cookies. Side note altho I had Alex last year from April on - I was not allowed to claim her on my taxes even tho I do 100% of her support - non blood relations must live with you for a year before you can cliam them. This doesn't seem fair either. The state of Virginia gave me sole custody, surely a legal document should show just cause for being able to claim her.  Nothing about system seems fair or logical.

                                             Trisha

> I'm not getting any of that $400, remember?  It's an earned income
> credit for children, not singletons without children.
> 
> Let me make it clear that I don't begrudge the parents that $400; God
> knows they need it.  It's just that the $3 less in taxes per paycheck
> isn't much to put back into the economy and I'd far rather that were put
> into social welfare and environmental programs.
> 
> Kat
> 
> Cleveland, Kyle E. wrote:
> > Well, Kat, the "official" line on the avg. $400 per family check/cheque was
> > that we (the average American compulsive over-spender) would toss that check
> > back into the economic river as fast as we could get it out of our mailboxes
> > and into the bank.  That was supposed to "kick-start" the economy and put
> > Mr. Bush into a favorable light as the president who gave back some of the
> > tax dollars we all complain about having to pay.  Isn't that a pretty fair
> > assessment of the administration's logic?  Trouble is, I don't know of a
> > soul who thought this was a good idea.  I know no one who thought the check
> > they're supposed to get this summer (Btw, haven't got mine yet. Have you?)
> > was worth the kick in the knees it gave to an already unsteady economic
> > recovery.  Now, the recovery has stopped and we're back to deficit spending
> > again (to be fair, though, our economic slowdown started before the
> > election--it just didn't become apparent until GWB was already in office).
> >