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It might be appropriate to alert taxpayers to something they don’t often hear about: A bipartisan plan to reduce wasteful and sometimes fraudulent spending and turn it into an investment in children and jobs.

That’s what Congress is heading toward with the killing of a pandemic business grants program that has been found to be 95% wasteful or fraudulent and turning that money into one for parents and businesses. The child care tax credit — which greatly reduces childhood poverty — will be renewed as will a tax to help businesses hire new employees.

The child tax credit would be increased to $2,000 per child in 2025 from $1,600 available now. The business tax breaks in the bill would allow companies to immediately deduct research and development costs and the cost of purchasing equipment. Low income housing tax credits would also be expanded and easier to access.

The wasteful program that would be ended started during the pandemic and provided funds to businesses if they kept people employed during the pandemic. But there was virtually no oversight, and administrators admit 95% of it may be have been wasteful spending. It was expected to cost $55 billion, but actually came in at five times that number.

The House Ways and Means Committee voted 40-3 last week to approve the deal, with all Republicans voting in favor. There may be more hesitation among Republicans in the Senate, but the margin of the vote in the House committee bodes well for passage.

The positive momentum comes at an unexpected time as partisan rancor seems to be continuing its pace in an election year. But far be it from us to stop Congress from getting things right.

This bipartisan bill is a win-win for taxpayers. Congress should quickly approve it so the IRS can provide the benefits to taxpayers for the 2023 tax year.

— The Free Press, Mankato, Jan. 31