Add CTC_c_under6_bonus policy parameter

[MaxGhenis]

Two major tax credit bills split out children under age 6:

• American Family Act (Bennet-Brown child allowance)
• Working Families Tax Relief Act

There's currently a _CTC_c_under5_bonus that can model this, but a _CTC_c_under6_bonus would be more accurate.

This depends on PSLmodels/taxdata#311 to add nu06.

[martinholmer]

Given the discussion in the PSLmodels/taxdata#311 issue, it would seen as if the thing to do here is to replace the old (almost never used) CTC_c_under5_bonus policy parameter with a new CTC_c_under6_bonus policy parameter.

[Thirdhuman]

Yes, "under 6" is far more useful for modeling policy proposals currently being considered.

[martinholmer]

@Thirdhuman said in Tax-Calculator issue #2294:

Yes, "under 6" is far more useful [than "under 5"] for modeling policy proposals currently being considered.

@andersonfrailey will be replacing the nu05 variable with a nu06 variable in both the PUF and CPS input data files. Once those files are available, I can make the change in the policy parameter to use the new variable.

[Thirdhuman]

In the meantime, simply turning all the 5 year olds into 4 year olds in my CPS input file should make nu05 function as under as if it were nu06 in a provisional sense, correct?

[martinholmer]

@Thirdhuman said in issue #2294:

In the meantime, simply turning all the 5 year olds into 4 year olds in my CPS input file should make nu05 function as under as if it were nu06 in a provisional sense, correct?

Yes, I guess so, assuming you reconstruct the nu05 variable after you make all the five year olds be four.

[Thirdhuman]

@martinholmer - would you mind confirming my understanding here on where this provisional recode is properly implemented?

This change would be performed after I've performed after I've produced the .csv on the relevant input file. Command:
* ./taxcalc.sh [file name] save

But before I perform the following commands on the resulting csv:
* tc [file name].csv 2017 --dump
* tc [file name].csv 2017 --dump --reform 'policy-change.json'

Is my understanding of when this provisional change can be properly executed without causing difficulties correct?

[martinholmer]

@Thirdhuman asked in issue #2294:

would you mind confirming my understanding here on where this provisional recode [of the input variable nu05] is properly implemented?

This change would be performed after I've performed after I've produced the .csv on the relevant input file.
Command:

* ./taxcalc.sh [file name] save

I don't think that will work because the taxcalc.sh script does not generate an input .csv file that includes the nu05 variable. The only CPS-based input file that contains the nu05 variable is the Tax-Calculator/taxcalc/cps.csv.gz file. If you want to somehow recode the nu05 variable in that file, things might work. But my recommendation would be to wait until @andersonfrailey replaces the nu05 variable with a new nu06 variable in both the cps.csv.gz and puf.csv files. We will then issue a new release of Tax-Calculator that uses that variable in CTC reform calculations.

Is my understanding of when this provisional change can be properly executed without causing difficulties correct?

In a word, NO. You seem to be a new user of Tax-Calculator and what you're trying to do is pretty advanced.
I'd recommend that you wait for the new version of Tax-Calculator.

[MaxGhenis]

Fixed via #2443 and PSLmodels/taxdata#329.