I live in a state where the legislative attitude is that women should be barefoot and in the kitchen. We don’t even have a deduction or credit for childcare expenses. I was surprised by how many states now have an EIC, in many cases refundable. I assume IRS somewhere has said those refunds are not taxable. I would compare these payments, to those. But now that IRS has said they are looking into “questions involving special tax refunds or payments made by states in 2022,” I would wait to see what they come up with.

Note that for Massachusetts, everyone is an essential worker. “Your eligibility is not determined by the industry in which you work.”

IRS says “we are working with state tax officials as quickly as possible to provide additional information and clarity for taxpayers.” Which is weird, because at least in California, state tax officials have been telling taxpayers to call IRS.