An Example for Reforming Tax-Based Incentive Programs: The Earned Income Tax Credit

Despite its good intentions, the EITC has expanded over time and become susceptible to large amounts of erroneous payouts resulting primarily from the misrepresentations of those claiming the credit. While this article discusses the EITC specifically, the problems and proposed solutions can also be applied to other tax-based programs, including the Health Coverage Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit.