This payment, known as the earned-income tax credit, was a centerpiece of President Clinton's tax initiative of 1993.

But they provided no details of how the payments, known as "contingency fees," actually worked.

Nor were other details of the payments known.

The payments, known as prepay forward sale contracts, were made in return for promises by Enron to deliver oil and gas over several years.

It would dismantle an array of antipoverty programs and instead give the states limited lump-sum payments, known as block grants.

During the Middle Ages, payment to the victim (or the victim's family), known as wergild, was another common punishment, including for violent crimes.

Those payments, known as remittances, helped reduce poverty in those countries and were a major source of foreign exchange, but the broader implications were complex.

They are protesting Republican plans to dismantle Medicaid and replace it with lump-sum payments, known as block grants, for the states.

The missed payments, known as an unfunded liability, were accruing interest at 8.75 percent over 60 years.

The payment, known as an earned income tax credit, has proved successful at the Federal level.