New York lawmakers have reached an agreement with Gov. Kathy Hochul to expand the child tax credit in the state to include children under the age of 4, a source familiar with the talks on Thursday said.
Expanding the tax credit is expected to be included in a finalized budget agreement, which could be struck this week.
Lawmakers this year had called for the child tax credit to be expanded with an initial proposal that would have led to a maximum credit of up to $1,500 per child and provide up to $500 per child regardless of income.
Supporters of the expanded credit had pointed to studies showing a since-lapsed expansion of the federal child tax credit resulted in 2.9 million children being lifted out of poverty across the country -- including 120,000 in New York.
Inclusion of the measure in the budget would come as New York has sought to bolster support for families, including measures meant to expand child care programs through more funding.
The budget is expected to also include an increase in the state's minimum wage to $17 and then link it to the rate of inflation. Lawmakers have also agreed to fund the state's system of publicly financed campaigns for this election cycle after considering a delay in the implementation of the program.