Paisley’s Law - Tax Credit for Parents of Children Born Stillborn

A Northwest Arkansas mom is behind a change in Arkansas tax laws that will benefit parents of stillborn children. Jill Lens delivered her son stillborn in 2017 and was unable to list Caleb as a dependent on her taxes. The University of Arkansas Law Professor reached out to State Representative Les Eaves in hopes of change. Together, they helped pass what’s now known as Paisley’s Law. Jill explains what this means for parents.

Jill Wieber Lens, Robert A. Leflar Professor of Law

In 2017, my son Caleb was stillborn at 37 weeks of pregnancy. When I filled out the taxes in 2018, I knew that I couldn’t list Caleb as a dependent on my federal taxes like I did his older sisters. This is a common experience for stillbirth parents—a denial of parenthood.  

What I didn’t know, though, was that had Caleb been born alive and died shortly after birth, I would have been able to list him as my dependent. Federal tax law would validate my parenthood of him had he taken just one breath. But he didn’t take that one breath, and thus federal tax law does not see me as Caleb’s parent.

This distinction makes little sense. Federal tax benefits are thought to be based on helping parents with the costs of raising children. Caleb died just two weeks before we were set to induce labor. I incurred the exact same costs preparing for him as I would have had he survived just minutes after birth. Yet, federal tax law draws a distinction based on live birth.

Prompted by parent activism, some state legislatures have created their own state income tax credits after stillbirth to help parents with the costs—including Arkansas. Effective for this 2022 tax year, Paisley’s Law now provides a $500 tax credit for parents of children born stillborn in the prior year. Paisley’s Law was introduced by Representative Les Eaves and is named after his granddaughter, who was stillborn. Other states providing tax relief include Arizona, Louisiana, Minnesota, Michigan, and North Dakota.

Paisley’s Law can help validate parenthood and provide some financial assistance to all Arkansans who experience stillbirth. Hopefully it can also help raise awareness.