a. U.S. Housing and Urban Development, “Fair Market Rents for the Section 8 Housing Assistance Payments Program,” Data Sets, Fair Market Rents: Overview (2007), http://www.huduser.org/datasets/
fmr/fmrover_071707R2.doc (accessed August 17, 2010).
36 — The Self-SUffICIenCY STanDarD for oregon
TreaTMenT of Tax CreDITS In TaBle6 anD fIgUre 7
The Standard shows refundable and nonrefundable tax credits as if they are received monthly. However, for the work supports modeled in Table 6 (Columns # 2–#6), the refundable federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the state EITC, the “additional” refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC), and the Oregon Working Family Child Care Credit (WFC) are shown as received annually. However, the Child Care Tax Credit (CCTC) is nonrefundable, meaning it can only be used to reduce taxes and does not contribute to a tax refund. Therefore, it is shown as a monthly credit against federal taxes in both the Self-Sufficiency Standard and in the modeling columns of Table 6.
The tax credits are calculated this way in Table 6 in order to be as realistic as possible. Until recently, a family could receive part of their EITC on a monthly basis (called Advance EITC), but many workers preferred to receive it annually as a lump sum. In fact, nearly all families received the EITC as a single payment the following year when they filed their tax returns.a Many families preferred to use the EITC as “forced savings” to pay for larger items that are important family needs, such as paying the security deposit for housing, buying a car, or settling debts.b Therefore, in Columns #2-#6 of Table 6, the total amount of the refundable federal and state EITC and the Oregon WFC the family would receive annually (when they file their taxes) are shown in the shaded rows at the bottom of the table instead of being shown monthly as in the Self-Sufficiency Standard column. This is based on the assumption that the adult works at this same wage, full-time, for the year.
Like the EITC, the federal CTC is shown as received monthly in the Self-Sufficiency Standard. However, for the modeled work support columns, the CTC is split into two amounts with only the portion that can be used to offset any remaining (after the CCTC) taxes owed shown monthly, while the “additional” refundable portion of the CTC is shown as a lump sum received annually in the shaded rows at the bottom of Table 6.
a. Some workers may have been unaware of the advance payment option, and others may had employers who did not participate. Also, research has shown that families make financial decisions based on receipt of the EITC (together with tax refunds) when they file their taxes early in the following year. Jennifer Romich and Thomas Weisner, “How Families View and Use the EITC: The Case for Lump-Sum Delivery,”
National Tax Journal, 53(4) (part 2) (2000): 1107-1134; hereafter cited as How Families View and Use the EITC.
b. How Families View and Use the EITC.
b. U.S. Government Printing Office, GPO Access, “Section 9. Child Care,” 108th Congress 2004 House Ways and Means Committee Green Book, Search: Child Care, http://www.gpoaccess.gov/
wmprints/search2.html (accessed August 17, 2010).
c. Oregon Department of Human Services, “2010 Child Care Market Price Study,” Child Care, Market Rate 2010, http://www.oregon.gov/
DHS/children/publications/#childcare (accessed January 10, 2011).
d. Jeffrey Capizzano et al., “Child Care Arrangements for Children under Five: Variation across States,” The Urban Institute, New Federalism: National Survey of America’s Families Series B, No.
B-7 (March 2007) p. 8, http://www.urban.org/url.cfm?ID=309438 (accessed August 17, 2010); hereafter cited as Child Care
Arrangements. Capizzano notes in a 2004 report analyzing updated National Survey of America’s Families data “…there seems to have been little change in the distribution of child care arrangements among both low- and higher-income families from 1999 to 2002.”
Jeffrey Capizzano and Gina Adams, “Children in Low-Income Families Are Less Likely to Be in Center-Based Child Care,” The Urban Institute, Snapshots of America’s Families III no. 16 (2004) p. 2, http://www.urban.org/url.cfm?ID=310923 (accessed August 17, 2010); hereafter cited as Child in Low-Income Families.
e. Child Care Arrangements and Children in Low-Income Families.
f. Child Care Arrangements, p. 8.
g. Child Care Arrangements, p. 8.
h. Oregon Department of Human Services, “2010 Child Care Market Price Study,” Child Care, Market Rate 2010, http://www.oregon.gov/
DHS/children/publications/#childcare (accessed January 10, 2011).
i. Food Research and Action Center, “SNAP/Food Stamps,” Federal Food/Nutrition Programs, http://frac.org/federal-foodnutrition-programs/snapfood-stamps/ (accessed December 13, 2010).
j. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Consumer Expenditures in 2009,” Economic News Release, http://www.bls.gov/
news.release/cesan.nr0.htm (accessed October 12, 2010).
k. Council for Community and Economic Research, ACCRA,
“ACCRA Cost of Living Index: 2009 Annual Average Section 2 Index,” http://www.c2er.org (accessed February 16, 2010).
l. Chris Porter and Elizabeth Deakin, Socioeconomic and Journey-to-work Data: A Compendium for the 35 Largest U.S. Metropolitan
The Self-SUffICIenCY STanDarD for oregon — 37
DaTa SoUrCeS
hoUSIng
Housing Cost: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, “Schedule B: FY 2011 Final Fair Market Rents for Existing Housing,” Data Sets, Fair Market Rents, http://www.huduser.org/portal/datasets/fmr.html (accessed November 2, 2010).
County-Level Housing Costs: U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder, “B25064 Median Gross Rent,”
2006-2008 American Community Survey 3-Year Estimates, Detailed Tables, http://factfinder.census.gov/ (accessed November 2, 2010).
ChIlD Care
Child Care Costs: Oregon Department of Human Services,
“2010 Child Care Market Price Study,” http://www.oregon.
gov/DHS/children/publications/#childcare (accessed January 10, 2011).
fooD
Food Costs: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, “Official USDA Food Plans: Cost of Food at Home at Four Levels, U.S. Average, June 2010,” http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/
FoodPlans/2010/CostofFoodJun10.pdf (accessed August 24, 2010).
County-Level Food Costs: Council for Community and Economic Research, ACCRA, “ACCRA Cost of Living
38 — The Self-SUffICIenCY STanDarD for oregon
Index: 2009 Annual Average Section 2 Index,” http://www.
c2er.org (accessed February 16, 2010).
PUBlIC TranSPorTaTIon
Public Transportation Use: U.S. Census Bureau, “Table B0810: Means of Transportation to Work,” 2006-2008
PrIVaTe TranSPorTaTIon
Auto Insurance Premium: National Association of Insurance Commissioners, “Average Expenditures for Auto Insurance by State, 2007,” Insurance Information Institute, http://www.iii.org/media/facts/statsbyissue/auto (accessed December 13, 2010).
Auto Insurance Market Share: Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, Division of Insurance,
County-Level Insurance Premium: Farmers Insurance Group, “Get a Quote,” Auto Insurance, https://quote.
farmers.com/FFQWeb/ffq/discounts.jsf (accessed December 10, 2010). Safeco Insurance, “Get a Quote Now,” Auto, http://www.safeco.com/ (accessed December 10, 2010).
Distance to Work: U.S. Department of Transportation, 2009 National Household Transportation Survey, “Average Person Trip Length (Trip Purpose: to/from Work),” Online Analysis Tools, http://www.nhts.ornl.gov (accessed January 21, 2010).
Fixed Auto Costs: Calculated and adjusted for regional inflation using Bureau of Labor Statistics data query for
Per Mile Costs: American Automobile Association, “Your Driving Costs,” Behind the Numbers 2010 Edition, AAA Association Communication, http://www.aaaexchange.com/
Assets/Files/201048935480.Driving%20Costs%202010.pdf (accessed August 11, 2010).
healTh Care
Inflation: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Consumer Price Index – All Urban Consumers, U.S. City Average,” Medical Care Services (for premiums) and Medical Services (for out-of-pocket costs), http://www.
bls.gov/cpi/ (accessed December 13, 2010).
Out-of-Pocket Costs: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and
State Premiums: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality,
Health Insurance Market Share: Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, Division of Insurance,
“2009 Oregon Market Share and Loss Ratio: Accident and Health,” Top 25 Insurers in 2009 by Market Share, Accident and Health, http://insurance.oregon.gov/
The Self-SUffICIenCY STanDarD for oregon — 39
County-Level Premium Costs: Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oregon, “Regence Evolve Rates,” http://www.
Federal Income Tax: Internal Revenue Service, “1040 Instructions,” http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.
State Income Tax: Oregon Department of Revenue, “2010 Oregon Income Tax Full Year Resident Form 40, Form 40S, Schedule WFC, and Instructions,” Personal Income Tax Forms and Instructions, http://www.oregon.gov/
DOR/PERTAX/docs/2010Forms/101-043-10.pdf (accessed October 20, 2010).