Table 1.
Sample characteristics, Panel Study of Income Dynamics, 1995–2015
| Living in states with EITC | Living in states without EITC | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panel A. Demographics | Mean (SD) or % | Mean (SD) or % | ||
| Female | 60.5 | 60.8 | ||
| Age (years) | 39.1 (14.4) | 38.7 (13.4) | ||
| Education | ||||
| Less than high school | 19.5 | 22.4 | ||
| High school | 43.8 | 43.8 | ||
| Some college | 24.8 | 23.7 | ||
| College or more | 11.8 | 10.2 | ||
| Race | ||||
| White | 51.2 | 33.8 | ||
| Black | 42.5 | 50.6 | ||
| Hispanic | 4.1 | 13.4 | ||
| Other | 2.3 | 2.3 | ||
| Married | 42.2 | 41.4 | ||
| Number of children | 1.5 (1.3) | 1.6 (1.3) | ||
| Household pre-tax earned incomea | 17,979 (12,596) | 18,667 (12,527) | ||
| Federal EITCa | 1,912 (1,666) | 2,014 (1,682) | ||
| State EITCa | 265 (348) | 0 | ||
| Panel B. Outcomes | Mean (SD) or % | No. Person-years | Mean (SD) or % | No. Person-years |
| General health excellent/very good/good | 82.7 | 10,473 | 80.2 | 16,426 |
| Psychological distress | 4.2 (4.4) | 4,800 | 4.2 (4.5) | 7,339 |
| Currently drinks alcohol | 57.1 | 8,197 | 51.1 | 12,699 |
| 3+ alcoholic drinks per day | 16.4 | 8,113 | 14.5 | 12,559 |
| Currently smokes | 32.1 | 8,201 | 26.4 | 12,710 |
| Number of cigarettes per day | 4.1 (7.8) | 8,174 | 3.2 (7.1) | 12,690 |
| No. persons | 4,333 | 6,488 | ||
| No. person-years | 10,491 | 16,463 | ||
Study sample was drawn from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics for survey years 1995–2015. Sample living in states with EITC includes individuals living in those states before and after policy implementation. EITC: earned income tax credit.
a
Inflation-adjusted US dollars