The purpose of this study is to examine what factors predict who received monthly Child Tax Credit payments and how they were spent. In March of 2021, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan (ARP). Included in this bill was an expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC), a program providing tax relief to families with children. The ARP directed the treasury to issue half of the credit in monthly payments from July to December of 2021. These monthly payments contributed to a lowering of the poverty rate from July through December of 2021 (Parolin et al. 2022). This study was conducted using secondary data from the Household Pulse Survey (HPS) public microdata (US Census Bureau 2021). Logistic regression was used to analyze what factors predicted recipience of CTC payments and how these payments were utilized. Results indicate that factors such as race, sex, education, income, employment status, and marital status were predictive of recpience and use patterns for expanded Child Tax Credit Payments.

This study explores who received monthly Child Tax Credit (CTC) payments in 2021 and how families used that money. As part of the American Rescue plan passed in early 2021, the government expanded the CTC and issued monthly payments to eligible families from July through December. These payments reduced child poverty over this six-month period. Using national survey data, this study examines how individual, and household characteristics influence whether someone receives payments and how they spent them. Analysis found that race, gender, education, income, job status, and marital status played a role in who received a payment and how they spent it.

Master of Science