The Use of a Nonrefundable Tax Credit to Increase Children’s Participation in Physical Activity in Alberta, Canada Jodie A. Stearns, Paul J. Veugelers, Tara-Leigh McHugh, Chris Sprysak, and John C. Spence Background: Potential income disparities were examined in the (1) awareness and uptake of the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit (CFTC), and (2) physical activity (PA) of children from families who did and did not claim the credit in Alberta, Canada in 2012 and 2014. Methods: Secondary analyses of 3 cross-sectional data sets of grade 5 students (10–11 y) were performed, including Alberta Project Promoting healthy Living for Everyone Schools 2012 (N = 1037), and Raising healthy Eating and Active Living Kids Alberta 2012 (N = 2676), and 2014 (N = 3125). Parents reported whether they claimed the CFTC in the previous year, their education and household income, and their child’s gender and PA. Children self-reported their PA from the previous 7 days. In Alberta Project Promoting healthy Living for Everyone Schools, children also wore pedometers. Analyses adjusted for clustering within schools and demographic factors. Results: Higher income families (≥$50,000/y) were more likely to be aware of and to have claimed the CFTC compared with low-income families (<$50,000/y). The CFTC was associated with organized PA with larger associations for higher-income families (odds ratio = 9.03–9.32, Ps < .001) compared with lower-income families (odds ratio = 3.27–4.05, Ps < .01). No associations existed for overall PA or pedometer steps with the CFTC. Conclusions: Income disparities exist in the awareness, uptake, and potential impact of the CFTC. Tax credits are not effective in promoting overall PA. Keywords: policy, financial barriers, sport, youth Socioeconomic status is associated with participation in phys- ical activity (PA). 1 In developed countries, those living in the higher socioeconomic status strata tend to engage in more PA and sport than those living at lower levels of the continuum. 1,2 Chil- dren, in particular, are sensitive to the impacts of wealth on PA. 3–7 This is especially the case for organized PA or sport where there is often a cost associated with participation. 8–10 Among the potential solutions for such financial barriers to organized PA are offering subsidies or tax credits to offset the costs of participation. 11 For instance, Canada introduced the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit (CFTC) in 2007 with the intent to facilitate more PA among children. 12 It originally was a 15% nonrefundable tax credit that allowed for a maximum claim of $500 per child up to the age of 16 years who was enrolled in a supervised and organized PA program for at least 8 consecutive weeks in the current tax year. This amounted to, at most, a tax reduction of $75 (ie, $500 × 15% marginal tax rate). The nonrefundable nature of the credit meant that unless a claimant had a tax liability to reduce, they would not qualify for the CFTC. Of the few studies conducted on the uptake of the CFTC, all found that Canadians living in low-income families were less aware of, and less likely to have claimed, the credit compared with high-income families. 13,14 In addition, fewer than 20% of Canadian parents thought the CFTC resulted in their child being more physically active. 13,14 Despite these findings, understanding the effectiveness of the CFTC in improving PA levels is limited. The one study that examined the relationship between availability of the credit and PA (child reported) con- cluded that it had no effect in adolescents aged 12–15 years. 15 Furthermore, none of the existing studies have made distinctions between the potential impacts of the CFTC on overall PA (eg, steps per day) and organized PA. Because the CFTC helps families with the cost of registering their children in organized physical activi- ties, it is possible that the credit has some impact on organized PA participation which may or may not translate into higher overall PA levels. To address the aforementioned limitations in the literature, this study examined secondary data from 3 established health behavior surveys of children in Alberta, Canada. The first objective ad- dressed potential income disparities in the awareness and uptake of the CFTC in families of grade 5 children in 2012 and 2014. Consistent with previous research, 13,14 it was hypothesized that lower-income families would be less aware of, therefore less likely to have claimed the CFTC. The second objective tested the potential impact of the CFTC on children’s PA including pedome- ter steps, organized PA, and child-reported PA. Because participa- tion in organized PA is required to claim the credit, it was expected that a higher proportion of children whose family claimed the credit would have participated in organized PA at least once a week compared with those whose family did not claim the credit. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that this effect would be greater for children of families of higher-income compared with lower- income. Differences were not expected in pedometer steps and child-reported PA between those who did and did not claim the credit. Methods Participants and Procedures Secondary data from grade 5 students (10–11 y old) attending one of the schools in the Alberta Project Promoting healthy Living for Stearns is with the Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Veugelers is with the School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. McHugh is with the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Sprysak is with the Faculty of Law, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Spence is with the Sedentary Living Lab, Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, University of Alberta, Edmon- ton, AB, Canada. Spence (jc.spence@ualberta.ca) is corresponding author. 1067 Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 2021, 18, 1067-1073 https://doi.org/10.1123/jpah.2020-0217 © 2021 Human Kinetics, Inc. ORIGINAL RESEARCH Unauthenticated | Downloaded 09/05/21 01:45 PM UTC