Research
Research
Effects of EBT on Program Enrollment: Evidence from a Mountain State
with Marianne Bitler, Jason Cook, and Seojung Oh
This paper investigates how a change in the benefit disbursement system in an in-kind transfer program from paper vouchers to an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) system affects program enrollment and attachment, focusing on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). We leverage the rollout of the WIC EBT system (called eWIC) in the state of Utah to identify these effects. Specifically, we employ a regression discontinuity (RD) analysis that uses the distance to the end date of a participant's WIC certification period as a running variable and the county's eWIC transition date as the discontinuity. Rich administrative data from the state of Utah's WIC program allow us cleanly identify each individual's certification period as well as whether the person recertified successfully for WIC, terminated WIC enrollment early, and if so, the reason for the early termination. While we find a strong first-stage effect, the results indicate that the transition to eWIC had little impact on WIC enrollment or attachment to the WIC program. Our findings suggest that although eWIC may have improved some aspects of the WIC experience, WIC program participation and much of its administrative burden remained unchanged. The eWIC transition in Utah, at least in the short run, did not appear to provide recipients with additional incentives to remain on the program large enough to offset the existing administrative burden.
Food Effects of the 2021 Expanded Child Tax Credit
2026, Food Policy, 138(1).
Insufficient food is a hardship faced by many U.S. households. Several U.S. social safety net programs aim to improve these households' food conditions. In this paper I examine effects of the 2021 expanded child tax credit on food insufficiency. I use a difference-in-differences design to assess the heterogeneous impacts of the credit's monthly cash transfers to households with children. I find suggestive evidence that highlights the value of heterogeneity in policy evaluation and allows me to comment on the targeting of the policy and further policy implications. I find the payments significantly decreased self-reported food insufficiency for treated households relative to the control with larger effects for low-income, Black, Hispanic, low-education, and single-parent households. Additionally, households interacting with less accessible Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs saw larger effects of the payments than those with more accessible programs. Households facing a higher cost of living also saw larger food insufficiency effects than those facing a lower price level. I contribute to the literatures on the effects of cash transfers on food sufficiency and on the heterogeneous effects of government policies.