Abstract

We examine the effects of an annual government social safety net payment on crime by leveraging geographic and intertemporal variation in the magnitude and timing of earned income tax credit (EITC) payments, combined with crime micro-data. We find that drug-related crimes increase somewhat whereas burglary and robbery decrease substantially within three weeks following peak EITC payments. Non-economic crimes, such as arson and sexual offenses, remain unchanged. Leveraging additional temporal variation in EITC disbursements induced by the PATH Act in 2017 confirms our findings. 

Note: Research papers posted on SSRN, including any findings, may differ from the final version chosen for publication in academic journals.  

---

• Keyword(s):
• accounting 121
• economic development policy 76
• policy 24

View Working Paper