Author:
Curran Megan,Hoynes Hilary,Parolin Zachary
Abstract
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 temporarily transformed the Child Tax Credit (CTC) into a more generous cash benefit that was more frequently distributed to families with children in the U.S. From July to December 2021, the families of more than 90 percent of U.S. children received monthly cash payments of up to $250 per child (or $300 per young child under six); and at tax time in 2022, families received lump-sum tax refunds of up to $1,500 per child (or $1,800 per young child). Many of these families had not previously had access to the full credit because their incomes were too low. The temporary expansion was not made permanent, and the CTC returned to its pre-expansion structure in 2022. This volume evaluates the effects of the 2021 CTC expansion, and this introduction provides broad context around the expansion, elaborates on the goals for the volume, and previews the volume’s subsequent contributions.
Reference25 articles.
1. Acs Gregory, Werner Kevin. 2021. How a permanent expansion of the Child Tax Credit could affect poverty. Washington, DC: Urban Institute. Available from www.urban.org.
2. Ananat Elizabeth, Glasner Benjamin, Hamilton Christal, Parolin Zachary. 2022. Effects of the expanded Child Tax Credit on employment outcomes: Evidence from real-world data from April to December 2021. National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper 29823, Cambridge, MA.
3. Burns Kalee, Fox Liana, Wilson Danielle. 13 September 2022. Expansions to Child Tax Credit contributed to 46% decline in child poverty since 2020. Washington, DC: United States Census Bureau. Available from www.census.gov.
4. Center on Poverty and Social Policy (CPSP). 25 January 2021. A poverty reduction analysis of the American Family Act. New York, NY: Center on Poverty and Social Policy at Columbia University. Available from www.povertycenter.columbia.edu.
5. The Child Tax Credit and Family Well-Being: An Overview of Reforms and Impacts