Material hardship declines after Child Tax Credit payout

A new analysis of Household Pulse Survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau finds that fewer households experienced trouble obtaining sufficient food and paying household expenses in the two-week period following the first Child Tax Credit advance payments began on July 15. Comparing reported food insufficiency rates between adults in households with children and those in households without, the analysis shows a 2.6 percentage point decline in food insufficiency among households with kids after the credit was issued, compared with no decline in households without children. Trouble paying expenses declined by 2.5 percentage points among households with children in this period, compared with a 1 percentage point increase in reported difficulty among households without children. #covid-19 #foodsecurity