As the Senate debates President Donald Trump‘s multi-trillion-dollar tax and spending package, there could be changes to the child tax credit, policy experts say.

If enacted as drafted, the House-approved bill would make permanent the maximum $2,000 credit passed via Trump’s 2017 tax cuts — which could otherwise revert to $1,000 after 2025 without action from Congress.

The highest credit would also rise to $2,500 from 2025 to 2028. After that, the credit’s top value would revert to $2,000 and be indexed for inflation.

But the Senate could have different plans, and negotiations will be “really interesting to watch,” said Howard Gleckman, senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.

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The proposed higher child tax credit comes as the U.S. fertility rate hovers near historic lows, which has been a concern for lawmakers, including the Trump administration.

Some research suggests financial incentives, like a bigger child tax credit, could boost U.S. fertility. But other experts say it won’t solve the issue long-term.

As the Senate prepares to debate Trump’s mega-bill, here’s how the child tax credit could change.

Vice President JD Vance, who formerly served as Senator of Ohio, floated a higher child tax credit during the campaign in August.   

“I’d love to see a child tax credit that’s $5,000 per child. But you, of course, have to work with Congress to see how possible and viable that is,” he told CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., in January also called on the Senate floor for a $5,000 child tax credit. His proposal would apply the credit to payroll taxes and provide advance payments throughout the year. 

“There’s some recognition here that they need do a little more,” Gleckman said.

House lawmakers in January 2024 passed a bipartisan child tax credit expansion, which would have improved access and retroactively boosted the refundable portion.

While the bill failed in the Senate in August, Republicans said they would revisit the measure. 

However, the child tax credit in the latest House-approved bill is less generous than the provision passed in 2024, policy experts say.

As written, the House plan provides no additional benefit to 17 million children from low-income families who can’t claim the full $2,000 credit, Margot Crandall-Hollick, principal research associate at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, wrote in May.

Some Social Security beneficiaries may find their June check is smaller: Starting this month, a share of people’s benefits can be garnished if they’ve defaulted on their student loans.

The Trump administration announced on April 21 that the U.S. Department of Education would resume collection activity on the country’s $1.6 trillion student loan portfolio. For nearly half a decade, the government did not go after those who’d fallen behind as part of Covid-era policies.

More than 450,000 federal student loan borrowers age 62 and older are in default on their federal student loans and likely to be receiving Social Security benefits, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found.

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Depending on details like their birth date and when they began receiving benefits, their monthly Social Security check may arrive June 3, 11, 18 or 25, according to the Social Security Administration.

Many Social Security recipients rely on those checks for most, if not all, of their income. So people who are facing a smaller federal benefit as a result of garnishment are likely in a panic, said Nancy Nierman, assistant director of the Education Debt Consumer Assistance Program in New York.

But, Nierman said, “the good news is there are multiple options for borrowers to stop those payment offsets.”

Here’s what you need to know if you’re at risk of a smaller benefit.

“If they are sick or disabled, they can file for a Total & Permanent Disability discharge,” Nierman added.

Borrowers may qualify for a TPD discharge if they suffer from a mental or physical disability that is severe and permanent and prevents them from working. Proof of the disability can come from a doctor, the Social Security Administration or the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Another route to stop the offset of Social Security benefits is getting current on the loans, said Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a nonprofit.

You can contact the government’s Default Resolution Group and pursue several different avenues to get out of default, including enrolling in an income-driven repayment plan.

“If Social Security is their only income, their payment under those plans would likely be zero,” Mayotte said.

For example, there are a number of charitable organizations that assist seniors with their health-care costs. At Copays.org you can apply for funds to put toward copays, premiums, deductibles and over-the-counter medications.

The National Patient Advocate Foundation has a financial resource directory in which you can search for local aid for everything from dental care to end-of-life services.

Many older people aren’t taking advantage of all the food assistance available to them, experts say. A 2015 study, for instance, found that less than half of eligible seniors participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

The extra money can go a long way for retirees on a fixed income, though. The maximum benefit a month for a household of one is $292. Grocery stores, online retailers and farmers markets accept the funds.

House Republicans passed a multi-trillion-dollar tax and spending package after months of debate, which included many of President Donald Trump‘s priorities. 

Now, policy experts are bracing for Senate changes as GOP lawmakers aim to finalize the “big bill” by the Fourth of July.

If enacted as currently drafted, the House’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” would make permanent Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, while adding new tax breaks for tip income, overtime pay and older Americans, among other provisions.

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The House bill also approved historic spending cuts to programs for low-income families, including Medicaid health coverage and SNAP, formerly known as food stamps.

“Overall, the [Senate] bill is not going to be that much different,” said Howard Gleckman, senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.

But there will be “a lot of debate” about the Medicaid provision, as well as other changes, he said.

Here are some other issues to watch during negotiations, policy experts say.

“We have enough to stop the process until the president gets serious about spending reduction and reducing the deficit,” Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said last week on CNN’s ‘State of the Union.’

An earlier version of the House package could raise the deficit by an estimated $3.8 trillion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. However, the agency hasn’t released an updated score to reflect the bill’s last-minute changes.

Other cost estimates for the House-passed reconciliation bill have ranged between $2 to $3 trillion over 10 years.

Under reconciliation, the Senate bill also must follow the “Byrd Rule,” which bans anything unrelated to federal revenue or spending.

After the Senate vote, House lawmakers must approve changes to the bill, which could be tricky with a slim Republican majority.

“That’s where the fight is really going to happen,” Gleckman said.

One sticking point during the House debate was the current $10,000 limit on the federal deduction for state and local taxes, known as “SALT,” which is scheduled to sunset after 2025.

Enacted by Trump via the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, or TCJA, of 2017, the $10,000 cap has been a key issue for certain lawmakers in high-tax states like New York, New Jersey and California.

Before TCJA, filers who itemized tax breaks could claim an unlimited deduction on state and local income taxes, along with property taxes. But the so-called alternative minimum tax reduced the benefit for some higher earners.

After lengthy debate, House Republicans approved a $40,000 SALT limit. If enacted, the higher cap would apply to 2025 and phase out for incomes over $500,000.

But the SALT limit is likely to be lower than $40,000 after Senate negotiations, experts say.

Staying closer to the current $10,000 cap “seems like a very natural place to start,” but the final number could be higher, said Alex Muresianu, senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation.

The Senate could also expand the child tax credit further, policy experts say.

If enacted in its current form, the House bill would make permanent the maximum $2,000 credit passed via the TCJA, which will otherwise revert to $1,000 after 2025.

The House measure would also make the highest child tax credit $2,500 from 2025 through 2028. After that, the credit’s top value would revert to $2,000 and be indexed for inflation.

But some senators, including Josh Hawley, R-Mo., have called for a bigger tax break. Vice President JD Vance also floated a higher child tax credit during the campaign in August.

With the House-approved tax breaks favoring higher earners, “there’s some recognition that they need to do a little more” for families, Gleckman said.

“That’s going to be a fun one to watch,” he said of the upcoming Senate debate.