A COVID-era program is awash in fraud. Ending it could help Congress expand the child tax credit

Congress is racing to wind down a tax break meant to encourage businesses to keep workers on the payroll during the COVID-19 pandemic. What was expected to cost the federal government $55 billion has instead cost it nearly five times that amount as of July. Meanwhile, new claims pour into the IRS each week, and that's ensuring a growing price tag that lawmakers are anxious to cap. Now, lawmakers across the political spectrum have at least one thing they agree on when it comes to tax policy: It’s time to close down the program.