On The Money — Job gains fall below estimates

Happy Wednesday and welcome to On The Money, your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line. Subscribe here: digital-staging.thehill.com/newsletter-signup.

Today’s Big Deal: A sharp miss on a closely watched gauge of the labor market. We’ll also look at steps the White House is taking to expand affordable housing and a new registration tool for the child tax credit.

But first, watch this gnarly grizzly bear battle.

For The Hill, I’m Sylvan Lane. Write me at slane@digital-staging.thehill.com or @SylvanLane. You can reach my colleagues on the Finance team Naomi Jagoda at njagoda@digital-staging.thehill.com or @NJagoda and Aris Folley at afolley@digital-staging.thehill.com or @ArisFolley.

Let’s get to it.

Employers created far fewer jobs than expected in August 

The number of new jobs private sector businesses added in August outpaced the previous month, but fell below industry estimates, according to a report released Wednesday by payroll services firm ADP. 

• The report found that from July to August, U.S. companies added a total of 374,000 jobs, including 86,000 additional workers at small businesses and roughly 149,000 for midsized companies. 
• For large businesses that employ 500 or more people, about 138,000 new jobs were added in August, according to ADP. 
• While the total number added is above the 326,000 new jobs recorded in July, it falls well below the 600,000 previously estimated by Dow Jones.

The background: The lackluster ADP report comes two days before the Labor Department is set to release the monthly federal jobs report, which covers the private and public sectors. 

• Economists expected the U.S. to have added roughly 750,000 jobs in August, according to consensus estimates, but there is considerable uncertainty over how the emergence of the delta variant will affect the total.
• Consumer confidence has plunged since COVID-19 cases began surging in late July, but after the survey period for that month’s jobs report, which showed a gain of 943,000 jobs. 

Widespread school closures may also limit the ability of many parents who left the workforce to return as planned upon the start of the school year.

LEADING THE DAY

Nonprofit collaborating with White House launches new child tax credit tool: Code for America, a technology nonprofit, announced Wednesday that it has launched a new online tool to help low-income families register for the monthly child tax credit (CTC) payments authorized by President Biden’s coronavirus relief law.

• The new tool, GetCTC.org, is a collaboration between Code for America, the White House and Treasury Department. 
• Notable features of the free tool include that it is mobile-friendly and available in both English and Spanish.

The context: The vast majority of eligible families are receiving monthly CTC payments automatically based on their recent tax returns. But a key challenge for the Biden administration is ensuring that eligible families that aren’t required to file tax returns, typically because they have low incomes, also get the monthly payments. Naomi explains here.

HOMEWARD BOUND

White House announces steps to boost affordable housing supply

The Biden administration on Wednesday announced a slew of policy maneuvers meant to expand the supply of affordable homes amid a record-breaking rally in housing prices.

The White House said Wednesday that the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Treasury Department, and Federal Housing Finance Agency would expand and reimpose several incentives and grants for the construction of roughly 100,000 additional homes over the next three years.

The administration is also seeking to limit the amount of new homes bought by investors and asset managers by expanding exclusive purchasing windows for individuals, families and nonprofits.

I’ll break down the White House’s moves here.

SCHEMING GREEN?

Wall Street regulator eyes increase in disclosure for ‘green’ fund managers

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is eyeing an increase in disclosure for “green” fund managers.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler made the announcement during a meeting Wednesday meeting with the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.

Appearing virtually before the panel, Gensler said he’s asked his staff to come up with recommendations on investment funds that brand themselves as “green,” “sustainable,” and “low-carbon.”

• ESG funds often choose companies for investments based on a stated commitment to at least one of the three criteria.
• But the SEC advises that not all ESG funds are the same, and some factors used by these funds are not defined in federal security law.

The Hill’s Jordan Williams has more here.

Good to Know

Walgreens on Tuesday became the latest major company to increase its starting pay for workers to $15 an hour amid a nationwide push among businesses to attract more employees. 

Here’s what else have our eye on:

• A union representing thousands of Southwest Airlines pilots has sued the company over alleged changes to employment rules, pay rates and other working conditions during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Walmart is hiring 20,000 workers and touting wages that top $20 per hour ahead of the holiday season, as many employers struggle to find workers amid a labor shortage.

That’s it for today. Thanks for reading and check out The Hill’s Finance page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you Thursday.

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