Is income during children's earliest years a key determinant of long-term child and adult success in the longer run? The research to date, Christopher Wimer and Sharon Wolf write, suggests that it is. Wimer and Wolf review substantial descriptive evidence that income can enhance child development and later adult outcomes, and that it does so most…

The Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit (CTC), Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC), and the dependent exemption all provide benefits to families with children. In 2009, a single mom (or dad) with two children can receive benefits ranging from $0 to about $7,500--depending on her income, age of the children, and where the children live. While…

Katherine Magnuson's research focuses on the well-being and development of economically disadvantaged children and their families. In the first half of this brief Magnuson pulls together scholarship on the effects of poverty and inequality on children, especially from infancy to age five. Her scope goes beyond the social sciences to include new…

This report identifies overall tax burdens faced by low income families, explaining how those burdens would change if certain types of federal income tax cuts were enacted. Using detailed household-level data on incomes and taxes, the report shows how federal income and payroll taxes differ for low income families and how these families benefit…

This special report of the Voices for Illinois Children argues that a refundable state earned income tax credit (EITC) would foster employment and reduce taxes for low-income Illinois families. The report maintains that many low-income working families and those beginning the transition from welfare to work confront ongoing poverty despite having…

This report examines state earned income tax credits (EICs) as a means to assist working poor families to escape poverty. Specifically, the report notes that six states have their own EICs, expressed as a percentage of the federal EIC, with the advantages being that the credit is a reward for work, is a pro-family policy, is efficiently targeted,…

Based on the assumption that fair tax systems should consider differences in ability to pay resulting from income sharing within families, this publication analyzes the effects of three strategies for federal tax reform on families raising children: the Armey/Shelby flat tax, the Nunn/Domenici USA Tax System, and the Gephardt 10-Percent Tax. Part…

The impact of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) on working families was analyzed. The analysis established that the EITC is, on balance, a highly effective program that meets its primary objectives well. The following benefits of the EITC were identified: (1) it reduced the poverty rate in 1999 by an estimated 1.5 percentage points; (2) it is…

Using data from several government and private sources and interviews with working families, this report examines the Arkansas economy, how Arkansas working families have fared economically in recent years, and their current challenges. The report offers suggestions about how the state can provide the tools families need to continue to move up the…