Fiscal Cliff Imperils Adoption Tax Credit

With Congress embroiled in debate over the so-called "fiscal cliff," many in the adoption community are concerned that the adoption tax credit set to expire at the end of the year could be forgotten, Baptist Press reports. The tax credit that provided last year a maximum of $13,360 to each adoptive family has helped countless low- and middle-income families afford the costly endeavor. Unlike a tax deduction, which only reduces taxable income, a tax credit actually reduces a person's tax liability. U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) introduced in September the Making Adoption Affordable Act, which would permanently establish the tax credit and make it "refundable," allowing adoptive families to receive a refund "in excess of their tax liability," but amid all the debate regarding the fiscal cliff, the bill "has sort of been stalled," says Bill J. Blacquiere, president of nationwide adoption agency Bethany Christian Services. "Throughout this year we've always been told by legislators that this bill would be taken up after the election," he said. "Well, now it is after the election..." Blacquiere fears that without the tax credit, there will be fewer adoptions. "People would just simply say, 'I can't afford this cost,' and they would back out of it," he said.