Keep Your Pay Act Calculator
Estimate the impact of Senator Booker's proposed tax reform
Keep Your Pay Act
The Keep Your Pay Act, introduced by Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), would more than double the standard deduction, expand the Child Tax Credit, increase the Earned Income Tax Credit for childless workers, and raise top income tax rates.
Increased standard deduction
Raises the standard deduction from $32,200 to $75,000 for married couples ($16,100 to $37,500 for single filers), reducing taxable income for households that do not itemize.
Expanded Child Tax Credit
Increases the CTC to $4,320 per child under 6 and $3,600 per child aged 6–17. Adds a $2,400 “baby bonus” for the year a child is born.
EITC expansion for childless workers
Lowers the minimum age from 25 to 19, removes the maximum age limit, and increases the maximum credit from $664 to $1,502 with a doubled phase-in rate.
Top income tax rate increases
Raises the 35% marginal tax bracket to 41% and the 37% bracket to 43%, increasing taxes on high-income earners.
We assume the expanded Child Tax Credit behaves the same as the proposed Child Tax Credit in the American Family Act, and the EITC expansion is the same as the proposal in the Tax Cuts for Workers Act.
This analysis is limited to the four provisions listed above. As more details of the proposal are made public, we may update this analysis.
Standard deduction: current law vs. proposed (2026)
Taxable income by AGI (2026)
Child Tax Credit by income: single parent of one child (2026)
Children under the age of 1 would receive a combined credit of $6,360 as they are entitled to the $2,400 baby bonus for their birth month and $360/month for the remaining 11 months ($3,960). The AFA phases down the CTC from its maximum amounts per child to $2,000, beginning at $112,500 for head of household filers. The AFA also raises the head of household threshold for the normal CTC phase-out from $200,000 to $300,000.
EITC for childless workers comparison (2026)
| Parameter | Current law | Keep Your Pay Act | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum age | 25 | 19 (24 for students) | −6 years |
| Maximum age | 64 | None | Removed |
| Maximum credit (0 children) | $664 | $1,502 | +$838 |
| Phase-in rate | 7.65% | 15.3% | +7.65 pp |
| Phase-out rate | 7.65% | 15.3% | +7.65 pp |
| Phase-out start | $10,840 | $11,610 | +$770 |