During the long pause between introduction of the minimum wage hike legislation in Congress and its (presumed) eventual passage, we have time to reflect on its efficiency vs. tax credits as a means of increasing the income of low-wage workers. The issue has arisen as some policymakers have wondered if expanding the Earned-Income Tax Credit might not be a more efficient means to this end. A recent treatment of the subject by Max Sawicky of the Economic Policy Institute, A Fish is Not a Fowl, walks us through almost every aspect of the trade-off, reaching this conclusion: There is a case for expanding refundable credits in the individual income tax... but they are not plausible substitutes for an increase in the minimum wage. Boosting incomes with a higher minimum wage avoids the dangers of reduced work incentives and larger marriage penalties in the income tax, escapes the burden of offsetting the cost of an expanded credit under the pay-as-you-go rules, foregoes the complexity of redesigning the tax system, and provides a benefit in plain view of the worker. In the end, it's a matter of defining efficiency, in fiscal or in free market terms.