evidence: We estimate that 52 million people applied for UI benefits from March 13 to December 21, or 21.0 percent of the U.S. adult population of 249 million. We also estimate that 40 million people received UI benefits during the pandemic, or 16.0 percent of the adult population.18 By way of comparison, 84 percent of the population age 18 and older received stimulus payments (i.e., Economic Impact Payments) that were authorized as part of the CARES Act.19 This comparison demonstrates the extent to which UI benefits were more targeted toward those experiencing economic hardship than were stimulus payments. [...] 15The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was also involved in designing and testing HPS questions that focus on household spending. See Thesia I. Garner, Adam Safir, and Jake Schild, "Receipt and use of stimulus payments in the time of the Covid-19 pandemic," Beyond the Numbers: Prices and Spending, August 2020, https://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-9/receipt-and-use-of-stimulus-payments-in-the-time-of-the-covid-19-pandemic.htm; and Thesia I. Garner, Adam Safir, and Jake Schild, "Changes in consumer behaviors and financial well-being during the coronavirus pandemic: results from the U.S. Household Pulse Survey," Monthly Labor Review, December 2020, https://doi.org/10.21916/mlr.2020.26.