The Demographics of the Recipients of 

the First Economic Impact Payment

1

Any opinions and conclusions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not represent the views of 

the U.S. Census Bureau. The Census Bureau has reviewed this data product for unauthorized disclosure of 

confidential information and has approved the disclosure avoidance practices applied to this release. DRB 

Approval Number(s): CBDRB-FY22-CES014-036, CBDRB-FY22-CES014-039, and CBDRB-FY23-CES014-011. 

John Voorheis

US Census Bureau

Joint Work With

Leah Clark, Amanda Eng and Nikolas Pharris-Ciurej (US Census Bureau)

Kevin Pierce (IRS SOI)

Adam Cole and Ben Meiselman (Treasury)
Introduction

• Today’s presentation: How the Census Bureau has worked with IRS to 

combine data sources to better understand the people and 

businesses of the US and improve equity in tax administration

• Case Study: The Demographics of EIP Recipients

• Roadmap:

• Background

• Demographics of EIP Recipients Project

• Lessons Learned

2
Background on EIP Project

• Equitable Data Working Group established as part of the EO 13985

• One goal: better understanding how eligibility and receipt of the 2020 CARES 

Act Economic Impact Payments (EIP) varied by age, sex, and race/ethnicity

• Census Bureau has population microdata including demographic 

information as well as an established ingest and linkage infrastructure

• IRS has EIP microdata and detailed knowledge of EIP actuation

3
Background on EIP Project (cont.)

• Census Bureau, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Treasury 

conducted a joint research project using a special extract of tax data 

on EIP receipt linked with Census Bureau-held demographic data

• Data sharing agreement was authorized under 6103(n) as the research 

benefits both tax administration and the Census Bureau

• Link to working paper and associated tables: The Demographics of the 

Recipients of the First Economic Impact Payment (census.gov)

4
Title 26 and Federal Tax Information

• Federal Tax Information held by the Internal Revenue Service is governed 

by Title 26 of the US Code

• Two important parts of Title 26:

• Section 6103(j): “Upon request...[IRS] shall furnish such returns, or return information reflected thereon, to officers and employees of the Bureau of the 

Census...[for] structuring of censuses and national economic accounts and 

conducting related statistical activities”

• Section 6103(n): “returns and return information may be disclosed to any person....to the extent necessary in connection with the processing, storage, transmission, and 

reproduction of such returns and return information, the programming, 

maintenance, repair, testing, and procurement of equipment, and the providing of 

other services, for purposes of tax administration.”

• The Census Bureau currently receives most FTI under 6103(j), but in certain 

circumstances, 6103(n) can provide a more nimble authority for data 

sharing if IRS and Census benefits are aligned

5
Bottom Line Up Front

• EIP disbursements reached an extremely large fraction of eligible 

individuals (90%+)

• Limited differences in receipt or timing by race/ethnicity

• Important to consider role of family structure or age-specific factors

• This collaboration is a proof of concept of expedited data sharing and 

collaboration on areas of joint interest to the Census Bureau, IRS, and 

Treasury

6
Eligibility for EIP

CARES Act of 2020 authorized direct EIP of $1,200 per eligible adult, 

with eligibility defined by:

• U.S. Citizen or resident alien

• Cannot be claimed as a dependent

• Social Security Number (SSN) valid for employment

• Income under thresholds or in phaseout range

• Threshold for full credit: $150,000 if married filing jointly; $112,500 if filing 

as head of household; $75,000 for other filing statuses

• EIP phases out by $5 per $100 of income above the threshold

• Adults with dependent children receive an additional $500 per child

7
Identifying Potentially Eligible Population

• Start with all non-deceased SSN holders born before 2003 in the Census 

Bureau Numident

• Link 1040 tax returns from tax years 2019 and 2018 by PIK

• For filers: use 2019 1040 information to estimate eligibility. If no 2019 

information, use 2018 information

• For nonfilers: 

• Additionally link administrative records data from:

• Social Security Administration (SSA) Payment History Update System (PHUS), Supplemental 

Security Record (SSR)

• Housing and Urban Development Public and Indian Housing Information Center and Tenant 

Rental Assistance Certification System (HUD PIC-TRACS), and 

• IRS W-2 data

• Simulate eligibility based on available income information, assuming single filing 

status (and no children)

8
Data and Linkage Overview

• Census Bureau conducted initial EIP eligibility analysis in mid 2021

• IRS sent Census Bureau EIP receipt data in early 2022

• Census Bureau ingested and processed the file using the Person 

Identification Validation System (PVS) to assign anonymized linkage 

keys (PIKs)

• Research team, within the Census Bureau computing environment, 

linked eligibility and EIP files

• Two analytic universes–adult individuals and tax units

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Combined Eligibility/Receipt Data

• Population: individuals (tax units) eligible for or receiving EIPs

• i.e., must be in Census’s simulated eligibility file or EIP data

• Assumes all recipients are eligible

• Demographic information linked via the Census Bureau composite 

Race/Ethnicity and Numident files via anonymized linkage keys (PIKs)

• Among EIP recipients, approx. 97% of individuals are assigned a PIK and 

approx. 93% are linked to a race/ethnicity

• The EIP file included sex/age info so very few recipients are missing sex or age

• Everyone in the eligibility file has a PIK by construction 

10
Payments Went Out Quickly and the Rate of Receipt 

was High

• Approximately 209 million individuals 

received the first EIP out of 228 million 

estimated potentially eligible

• Older individuals were more likely to 

receive EIP overall, but younger 

individuals received their payments 

faster

• Payments went out faster to low- and 

middle-income tax units, as well as tax 

units with children

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Received 

first week

Received 

first six 

weeks

Recipients as a 

percentage of 

potentially 

eligible

Individuals 55% 95% 92%

Age <26 71% 94% 86%

Ages 26-60 62% 95% 92%

Age >60 38% 97% 94%

Female 57% 96% 93%

Male 54% 95% 91%

Tax units 54% 95%

AGI <$30,000 67% 97%

AGI $30,000-69,999 69% 96%

AGI >=$70,000 57% 98%

Nonfiler 2% 87%

With children 77% 98%

Without children 48% 94%

Note: the statistics on individuals are derived from appendix table 1; the statistics on tax 

units by AGI are derived from appendix table 2; and the statistics on tax units by presence 

of children are derived from appendix table 3.

DRB Approval Number(s): CBDRB-FY22-CES014-036, CBDRB-FY22-CES014-039, and CBDRB-FY23-CES014-011
Distribution of Age Within Racial/Ethnic Subgroups

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8%

12%

10%

5%

9%

17%

10%

6%

6%

13%

61%

68%

68%

65%

67%

67%

71%

39%

57%

70%

31%

21%

22%

30%

25%

16%

19%

56%

37%

17%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

All

Hispanic, Any Race

Non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native

Non-Hispanic Asian

Non-Hispanic Black or African American

Non-Hispanic Multiracial

Non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific...

Non-Hispanic Some Other Race

Non-Hispanic White

Unknown Race and Ethnicity

<26 26-60 >60

Number of individuals

227,822,000

33,560,000

2,028,000

8,548,000

27,237,000

2,879,000

397,500

766,500

135,080,000

17,326,000

DRB Approval Number(s): CBDRB-FY22-CES014-036, CBDRB-FY22-CES014-039, and CBDRB-FY23-CES014-011
Timing of Receipt by Race/Ethnicity

13

44%

48%

54%

54%

55%

55%

60%

60%

61%

55%

49%

44%

43%

39%

38%

41%

35%

34%

34%

40%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Non-Hispanic Some Other Race

Unknown Race and Ethnicity

Non-Hispanic Asian

Non-Hispanic Black or African American

Non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native

Non-Hispanic White

Non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

Hispanic, Any Race

Non-Hispanic Multiracial

All

Receipt by time period

First week Weeks 2-6 Week 7+

DRB Approval Number(s): CBDRB-FY22-CES014-036, CBDRB-FY22-CES014-039, and CBDRB-FY23-CES014-011
Recipients as a Percentage of the Potentially 

Eligible Population, by Race/Ethnicity

14

83%

87%

88%

89%

90%

90%

91%

92%

94%

92%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Non-Hispanic Some Other Race

Hispanic, Any Race

Unknown Race and Ethnicity

Non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

Non-Hispanic Black or African American

Non-Hispanic Asian

Non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native

Non-Hispanic Multiracial

Non-Hispanic White

All

Recipients as a percentage of potentially eligible

DRB Approval Number(s): CBDRB-FY22-CES014-036, CBDRB-FY22-CES014-039, and CBDRB-FY23-CES014-011
Recipients as a Proportion of the Potentially 

Eligible Population, by Race/Ethnicity and Age

15

Hispanic, Any Race

Non-Hispanic Asian

Non-Hispanic Black or 

African American

Non-Hispanic White

80%

82%

84%

86%

88%

90%

92%

94%

96%

98%

100%

<26 26-60 >60

Recipients as a percentage of potentially 

eligible

Age Group

DRB Approval Number(s): CBDRB-FY22-CES014-036, CBDRB-FY22-CES014-039, and CBDRB-FY23-CES014-011
Implications and Lessons Learned

• Collaboration is a proof of concept of expedited data sharing and 

collaboration on areas of joint interest to the Census Bureau and IRS 

(and potentially other agencies)

• Census Bureau data can be used to understand the population of eligible 

individuals who may or may not receive a benefit; this in turn can be used by 

agencies to improve program implementation

• When studying a program, incorporating input from agency personnel 

implementing the program improves the research process

• Provides a potential roadmap for future collaborations with IRS and 

other agencies

16
Thanks!

John Voorheis

john.l.voorheis@census.gov

17
Additional Detail on Receipt by Age, AGI and 

Presence of Children

18

Recipients

Received 

first week

Received 

first six weeks

Potentially 

eligible

Recipients as a 

percentage of 

potentially 

eligible

Individuals 209,469,000 55% 95% 227,822,000 92%

Age <26 15,514,400 71% 94% 17,965,000 86%

Ages 26-60 128,021,500 62% 95% 139,380,500 92%

Age >60 65,933,100 38% 97% 70,476,500 94%

Female 109,288,300 57% 96% 117,416,000 93%

Male 100,180,700 54% 95% 110,406,000 91%

Tax units 160,982,550 54% 95%

AGI <$30,000 45,700,050 67% 97%

AGI $30,000-69,999 52,689,200 69% 96%

AGI >=$70,000 34,608,450 57% 98%

Nonfiler 27,984,850 2% 87%

With children 35,658,050 77% 98%

Without children 125,324,200 48% 94%

Note: the statistics on individuals are derived from appendix table 1; the statistics on tax units by AGI are 

derived from appendix table 2; and the statistics on tax units by presence of children are derived from appendix 

table 3.