A bill before the Legislature would expand the state income tax credit for low-wage-earning workers.
The credit was reduced while Governor Rick Snyder was in office and Republicans controlled the Legislature.
Democratic state Senator Jeff Irwin says it’s time to increase the credit.
“People have been working harder and having a harder time getting ahead, and I think it’s really important that we provide targeted tax breaks to low-income workers,” said Sen. Irwin.
Governor Whitmer, also a Democrat, favors a bigger earned income credit.
Some Republicans do, too. They say it’s an incentive for people on public assistance to find work.
But other GOP lawmakers say it violates the intent of Michigan’s flat-rate income tax, where everyone is supposed to pay the same percentage of their income.