The Cash Transfer Lab (CTL) is an interdisciplinary research center focused on cash transfers. It was founded in 2021 by social demographer Dr. Sarah K. Cowan.
Citizens, politicians, advocates and more are increasingly interested in direct cash payments to Americans such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and COVID-19 stimulus payments. The CTL researches the effect of cash transfers to build an evidence base and understand what happens when we give people cash.
The first major initiative is to study the effects of the permanent fund dividend (PFD), a policy in Alaska that has paid every Alaskan resident a substantial amount of cash annually since 1982.
In addition, elderly Alaskan residents have also received cash from the state, and many Alaska Natives receive cash as shareholders in Alaska Native corporations.