The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) temporarily increased the child tax credit (CTC), made the credit fully refundable, and authorized the IRS to issue up to half the credit as an advance monthly payment beginning in July 2021. The IRS reports that nearly 61 million children received the...
Mainstream public finance research has largely ignored racial issues. This paper calls on public finance economists to explore racial issues more extensively. The obvious reasons are to understand the effects of inequitable and inefficient policies, help develop remedies,...
The murder of George Floyd in spring 2020 sparked a national reckoning and renewed attention to issues of racial equity and justice. This long-overdue awakening led me to read extensively about racism and to think about interactions between race and public policy. To be...
Life expectancy at age 65 has grown by about six years since Social Security began paying benefits in 1940 and, despite some recent temporary declines, is expected to increase significantly further in future decades. Despite a modest increase in the age at which people can claim full Social...
In 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act temporarily expanded the federal child tax credit (CTC) for one year, including some families formerly ineligible for the credit. This could lift 59,000 children in Oklahoma out of poverty annually, cutting the state's 13 percent child poverty rate roughly...
This study uses the Urban Institute’s Dynamic Simulation of Income Model to project the share of Social Security beneficiaries whose retirement incomes fall below 75 percent of preretirement income, a common benchmark for a secure retirement. Absent significant Social Security reforms, we...
This paper makes two key points. First, coal production is no longer a reliable source of revenue to fund the Black Lung Program. Second, the problem is going to get worse fast, and policymakers should promptly prepare for that and ensure that coal workers are not left behind. As the coal...
Interest rates on government debt have been falling in many countries for the last several decades, with markets indicating that rates may stay low well into the future. The recent economic crisis precipitated by the coronavirus only accentuates these trends. As...
Interest rates on government debt have fallen in many countries over the last several decades, with markets indicating that rates may stay low well into the future. It is by now well understood that sustained low interest rates can change the nature of long-run fiscal...
The 2021 temporary expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) is unprecedented in its reach and is predicted to cut American child poverty by more than half. The expanded CTC provides families with $3,600 for every child in the household under the age of six and $3,000 for every child between the...
Who Has Received Advance Child Tax Credit Payments, and How Were the Payments Used?
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) temporarily increased the child tax credit (CTC), made the credit fully refundable, and authorized the IRS to issue up to half the credit as an advance monthly payment beginning in July 2021. The IRS reports that nearly 61 million children received the...
Public Finance and Racism
Mainstream public finance research has largely ignored racial issues. This paper calls on public finance economists to explore racial issues more extensively. The obvious reasons are to understand the effects of inequitable and inefficient policies, help develop remedies,...
Reflections on What Makes a Policy Racist
The murder of George Floyd in spring 2020 sparked a national reckoning and renewed attention to issues of racial equity and justice. This long-overdue awakening led me to read extensively about racism and to think about interactions between race and public policy. To be...
Trickle-Down Social Security
Life expectancy at age 65 has grown by about six years since Social Security began paying benefits in 1940 and, despite some recent temporary declines, is expected to increase significantly further in future decades. Despite a modest increase in the age at which people can claim full Social...
The Impact of the Expanded Child Tax Credit in Oklahoma
In 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act temporarily expanded the federal child tax credit (CTC) for one year, including some families formerly ineligible for the credit. This could lift 59,000 children in Oklahoma out of poverty annually, cutting the state's 13 percent child poverty rate roughly...
Preparing for Retirement Reforms
This study uses the Urban Institute’s Dynamic Simulation of Income Model to project the share of Social Security beneficiaries whose retirement incomes fall below 75 percent of preretirement income, a common benchmark for a secure retirement. Absent significant Social Security reforms, we...
Putting the Trust Back in the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund
This paper makes two key points. First, coal production is no longer a reliable source of revenue to fund the Black Lung Program. Second, the problem is going to get worse fast, and policymakers should promptly prepare for that and ensure that coal workers are not left behind. As the coal...
Implications of Low Interest Rates for the Design of Tax Policy
Interest rates on government debt have been falling in many countries for the last several decades, with markets indicating that rates may stay low well into the future. The recent economic crisis precipitated by the coronavirus only accentuates these trends. As...
Tax Policy Design with Low Interest Rates
Interest rates on government debt have fallen in many countries over the last several decades, with markets indicating that rates may stay low well into the future. It is by now well understood that sustained low interest rates can change the nature of long-run fiscal...
Employment, Financial and Well-being Effects of the 2021 Expanded Child Tax Credit
The 2021 temporary expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) is unprecedented in its reach and is predicted to cut American child poverty by more than half. The expanded CTC provides families with $3,600 for every child in the household under the age of six and $3,000 for every child between the...