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593 Results

Policy

What happens to U.S. workers without access to Unemployment Insurance amid economic downturns or disruptions related to AI? (opens in a new tab)

Essays SEP 2, 2026

The adoption of artificial intelligence in the workplace has led to predictions of U.S. labor market disruptions. In response, policymakers have increased attention on the fitness of the nation’s social…

By: Megan Rivera (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

New research shows how U.S. homeownership and the accumulation of housing wealth are linked to political participation (opens in a new tab)

Essays AUG 14, 2026

Persistent affordability pressures have driven up housing costs for millions of U.S. families in recent years. Home prices remain near record highs relative to incomes, mortgage rates and associated costs…

By: Carlos Fernando Avenancio-Leon (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Academic

Housing Wealth Accumulation and Electoral Representation (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers AUG 14, 2026

We document that housing wealth accumulation systematically differs among homeowners by their political participation. Using a nationwide voter-property dataset, we find that realized housing appreciation increases monotonically the more a…

By: Carlos F. Avenancio-León, Yutao He (opens in a new tab), Michael Reher (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Watch Now

Policy

Defining extreme wealth is more complicated than it looks (opens in a new tab)

Videos AUG 13, 2026

Facing high levels of income and wealth inequality and shrinking tax revenues, U.S. policymakers are showing increased interest in proposals to tax the richest households. Yet determining which households fall into that category is complex and changes based…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Estimating AI exposure is useful for research but cannot yet tell policymakers the whole story of AI’s impact on the labor market (opens in a new tab)

Essays AUG 7, 2026

Artificial intelligence has the potential to substantially change the nature and availability of work. To effectively manage the transitions this technology might bring to the U.S. economy, policymakers need information…

By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Personal Income in the United States nudges up in May but is down 0.76 percent in the past 6 months (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUN 25, 2026

According to today’s release of Personal Income estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. household incomes have fallen 0.76 percent in the past 6 months, with month-to-month declines…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Transfer income has fallen faster than other components of U.S. income over the past 3 months

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Policy

Transfer income has fallen faster than other components of U.S. income over the past 3 months (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 25, 2026

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Income declines over the past 3 months and the past 6 months are higher for low-income U.S. households

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Policy

Income declines over the past 3 months and the past 6 months are higher for low-income U.S. households (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 25, 2026

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Personal Income is now declining year-over-year, a possible warning sign for the economy

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Policy

Personal Income is now declining year-over-year, a possible warning sign for the economy (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 25, 2026

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

U.S. income data for 2024 shows the top 10 percent accrued the highest share of income since 2000 (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUN 25, 2026

Today, Equitable Growth updated the U.S. Inequality Tracker through 2024 following the release of new data last week by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The data show that the…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. income shares changed little due to the pandemic, with top decile and bottom half households making gains

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Policy

U.S. income shares changed little due to the pandemic, with top decile and bottom half households making gains (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 24, 2026

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

In a reversal of 21st century trends, wages grew faster for lower-income U.S. households in the pandemic era

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Policy

In a reversal of 21st century trends, wages grew faster for lower-income U.S. households in the pandemic era (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 24, 2026

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Factsheet: Defining top U.S. income and wealth thresholds for tax policy (opens in a new tab)

Factsheets MAY 27, 2026

Federal and state policymakers in the United States, responding to high levels of income and wealth inequality and shrinking tax revenues, are increasingly interested in proposals to tax households with…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Defining top wealth and income thresholds for U.S. tax policy design and analysis (opens in a new tab)

Reports MAY 27, 2026

Wealth and income inequality are an ongoing area of interest for policymakers. In particular, the rise of the richest of the rich—not just the top 1 percent, but also the…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Realized capital gains are highly volatile, leading to large swings in the top 0.1% U.S. income thresholds

View Chart

Distributional weighting in benefit-cost analysis is a tool for overcoming bias against lower-income individuals in economists’ measurements of the net benefit of government policies that affect populations at different levels…

By: Daniel Acland (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Population weights reveal that the distribution of cost and benefits of policies are skewed differently

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Policy

Population weights reveal that the distribution of cost and benefits of policies are skewed differently (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 13, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Tariff costs impact industries with mostly White, male, and noncitizen workers (opens in a new tab)

Essays NOV 4, 2025

The U.S. economy is flying blind, with most economic-data publications paused indefinitely due to the shutdown of the federal government amid a general U.S. labor market slowdown and just as…

By: Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Workers in the Midwest and South tend to work in more tariff-exposed industries

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Policy

Workers in the Midwest and South tend to work in more tariff-exposed industries (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 3, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Workers with less than a college education are overrepresented in the most tariff-exposed industries

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Policy

Workers with less than a college education are overrepresented in the most tariff-exposed industries (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 3, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

White, Hispanic, and noncitizen men are overrepresented in the most tariff-exposed industries

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Policy

White, Hispanic, and noncitizen men are overrepresented in the most tariff-exposed industries (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 3, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

U.S. manufacturing is particularly vulnerable to tariff costs

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Policy

U.S. manufacturing is particularly vulnerable to tariff costs (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 3, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Policy

Workplace exposure to artificial intelligence is higher among U.S. workers with higher wages, depending on how AI is used (opens in a new tab)

Essays OCT 23, 2025

Recent advances using artificial intelligence in workplaces, particularly large language models such as Claude.ai and ChatGPT, are increasingly disrupting the U.S. labor market. The cognitive power of AI has the…

By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab), Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power

AI exposure is greatest among higher-paid workers regardless of age, race and education status

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Policy

AI exposure is greatest among higher-paid workers regardless of age, race and education status (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 22, 2025

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power

Asian American and highly educated workers are most exposed to AI

View Chart

Essays SEP 11, 2025

Workers in the United States have no say over business decisions made in their workplaces by corporate America. Unions, of course, are important for workers’ ability to exercise power over…

By: Lenore Palladino (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Political Economy & Democracy Taxation

The overall U.S. tax system today is only mildly progressive

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Policy

The overall U.S. tax system today is only mildly progressive (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations SEP 10, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Racially resentful White Americans are more opposed to progressive taxation

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Policy

Racially resentful White Americans are more opposed to progressive taxation (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations SEP 9, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Policy

What is austerity, and how does it affect the broader U.S. economy? (opens in a new tab)

Reports AUG 12, 2025

With the passage into law of the Republican budget reconciliation bill last month and the recent work of the Department of Government Efficiency under Elon Musk, austerity is once again…

Visualizations AUG 7, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Academic

Why Financial Crises Recur (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers AUG 5, 2025

Financial crises have occurred around the world for over two centuries. These crises have been so costly and frequent that one wonders why governments cannot prevent them from recurring despite…

By: Gary B. Gorton (opens in a new tab), Jeffery Y. Zhang (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Accounting for capital gains in income significantly increases U.S. inequality (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 15, 2025

The Washington Center for Equitable Growth’s recently launched U.S. Inequality Tracker uses data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis to show how income and wealth inequality have evolved in…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

With capital gains, the share of income earned by the wealthiest households went up 5 percentage points since 2002

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Policy

With capital gains, the share of income earned by the wealthiest households went up 5 percentage points since 2002 (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 14, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Pure capital gains are highly volatile and can turn negative in recessions

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Policy

Pure capital gains are highly volatile and can turn negative in recessions (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 14, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

The 10 worst policies for equitable economic growth in the 2025 budget reconciliation law (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUL 14, 2025

The 2025 budget reconciliation law that was enacted earlier this month is a sprawling piece of legislation, touching almost every corner of the federal budget and the U.S. economy. It…

By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Policy

Republican reconciliation bill’s cuts to social programs will damage some congressional districts’ local economies (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUL 11, 2025

In a recent working paper, Equitable Growth grantee Robert Manduca of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor demonstrates that government transfers make sizable contributions to local economies in much of…

By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

In some U.S. congressional districts, cuts from the reconciliation bill are bigger than multiple local industries combined

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Policy

In some U.S. congressional districts, cuts from the reconciliation bill are bigger than multiple local industries combined (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 10, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Slow wage growth is the key to understanding U.S. inequality in the 21st century (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JUL 8, 2025

The Washington Center for Equitable Growth today launched the U.S. Inequality Tracker, which tracks income and wealth inequality in the United States and highlights how particular components of income and…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Americans informed about the distributional effects of Republicans’ tax and budget bill overwhelmingly oppose it (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUL 3, 2025

Republicans in the U.S. Senate recently passed a version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, championed by President Donald Trump. The House of Representatives passed an earlier version of…

Visualizations JUN 25, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The Macroeconomic Effects of Climate Policy Uncertainty

Academic

Americans Informed About the Distributional Effects of Republicans’ Budget Bill Overwhelmingly Oppose It (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers JUN 25, 2025

Republicans in the Senate are currently considering the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which, if enacted, would be the most regressive U.S. tax and budget law in at least the…

By: Jacob S. Hacker, Patrick Sullivan (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Congressional Republicans’ budget bill is the most regressive in at least 40 years (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUN 25, 2025

The U.S. Congress is in the midst of debating a budget bill that would make massive changes to U.S. tax and spending policy over the course of the next decade…

By: Jacob Hacker (opens in a new tab), Patrick Sullivan (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Millions of Americans, including children, will lose nutrition assistance due to proposed SNAP cuts – updated

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Policy

Millions of Americans, including children, will lose nutrition assistance due to proposed SNAP cuts – updated (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 24, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Medicaid and SNAP cuts in congressional Republicans’ budget bill will negatively impact local economies (opens in a new tab)

Essays JUN 24, 2025

The budget reconciliation bill recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives proposes to make large cuts to Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and other social programs to pay…

By: Robert Manduca (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Academic

Financial and Transfer Income as Components of the Regional Economic Base (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers JUN 24, 2025

Economists and geographers have long divided industries into “basic” and “nonbasic” sectors depending on whether they bring money into a region from outside or serve local demand. Traditionally, the regional…

By: Robert Manduca (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Reducing IRS funding by half could cost the same amount of the Republican budget bill in noncompliance increases

View Chart

Policy

Reducing IRS funding by half could cost the same amount of the Republican budget bill in noncompliance increases (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 23, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

No tax on tips or overtime provisions cost less than the more regressive proposals in the Republican tax bill

View Chart

Policy

No tax on tips or overtime provisions cost less than the more regressive proposals in the Republican tax bill (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 23, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Americans have heard more about the no tax on tips and overtime provisions of the Republican bill than its more regressive provisions

View Chart

Policy

Americans have heard more about the no tax on tips and overtime provisions of the Republican bill than its more regressive provisions (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 23, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Many of the wealthiest U.S. individuals do not pay any estate taxes

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Policy

Many of the wealthiest U.S. individuals do not pay any estate taxes (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 23, 2025

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

16 million Americans will lose health care coverage if the House-passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act becomes law

View Chart

Blog MAY 8, 2025

Chairman Arrington, Ranking Member Boyle, members of this committee, thank you for the opportunity to be here. Today, I’d like to make three main points. First, the main culprit responsible…

By: Michael Linden (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Watch Now

Policy

Designing economic policy that strengthens U.S. democracy and incorporates people’s lived experiences (opens in a new tab)

Videos APR 30, 2025

Around the globe, people are increasingly dissatisfied with the state of democratic capitalism. In the United States and other rich democracies, economic policy has too often in recent decades produced…

By: Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (opens in a new tab), Shayna Strom (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Political Economy & Democracy

Policy

Advancing economic research on the Inflation Reduction Act: Q&A with Heather Boushey (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs APR 23, 2025

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 is the most significant economic and clean energy jobs program the United States has ever initiated. To improve overall understanding of whether the new…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Academic

Request for Proposals: The economic effects of the Inflation Reduction Act (opens in a new tab)

RFPs APR 2, 2025

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

The qualified small business stock exclusion overwhelmingly benefits the wealthy and should be reformed in 2025 (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs APR 1, 2025

This year’s debate over the expiring personal income and estate tax provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provides an opportunity for reforming the qualified small business stock…

By: Jean Ross (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Policy

Benchmarking the U.S. economy that President Donald Trump is set to inherit (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JAN 16, 2025

When President Donald Trump takes the presidential oath of office again on January 20, he will be inheriting a very different economy, with a very different outlook, than the one…

By: Ernie Tedeschi (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Watch Now

Policy

Pro-growth tax reform in 2025 would boost the U.S. economy for years to come (opens in a new tab)

Videos JAN 15, 2025

In the aftermath of the presidential election in 2024, it’s clear that many Americans feel like the U.S. economy is not working for them. Even though policymakers on both sides…

By: Shayna Strom (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Shutterstock - This image was generated by AI

Policy

ASSA 2025 Round-up: Day 3 (opens in a new tab)

Blog JAN 6, 2025

Yesterday was the third and final day of the 2025 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Taxation

Policy

ASSA 2025 Round-up: Day 2 (opens in a new tab)

Blog JAN 5, 2025

Yesterday was the second day of the 2025 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held in San…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

ASSA 2025 Round-up: Day 1 (opens in a new tab)

Blog JAN 4, 2025

Yesterday was the first day of the 2025 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held in San…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power

Policy

Accelerating research can help fill the AI knowledge gaps for U.S. policymakers (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs DEC 17, 2024

It is hard for policymakers to ignore today’s “AI arms race” and the public debate on the economic and social significance of generative artificial intelligence. The discourse is fueled in…

By: Rohini Kosoglu (opens in a new tab), Christian Edlagan (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power

Academic

Request for Proposals: Promoting competition and supporting workers in an era of AI innovation (opens in a new tab)

RFPs NOV 20, 2024

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Academic

Request for proposals: Research grants for early career scholars (opens in a new tab)

RFPs OCT 30, 2024

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Allowing the 2017 estate tax changes to expire will reduce U.S. inequality and promote economic growth and opportunity (opens in a new tab)

Reports OCT 9, 2024

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act made deep cuts to the personal income, estate, and corporate income taxes that were costly and heavily skewed toward the very wealthy. The…

By: Jean Ross (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

The number of U.S. taxable estates has declined due to the larger estate tax exemption

View Chart

Policy

The number of U.S. taxable estates has declined due to the larger estate tax exemption (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 8, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Under current U.S. law, high-income earners pay most of the federal estate tax

View Chart

Policy

Under current U.S. law, high-income earners pay most of the federal estate tax (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 8, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

U.S. wealth disparities have widened substantially over the past 35 years

View Chart

Policy

U.S. wealth disparities have widened substantially over the past 35 years (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 8, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Wealth is more concentrated in the United States than in other economically advanced nations

View Chart

Policy

Wealth is more concentrated in the United States than in other economically advanced nations (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 8, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

A majority of assets are owned by the wealthiest 10 percent of U.S. households

View Chart

Blog APR 23, 2024

A new report from the National Academy of Science’s Committee on National Statistics is packed with recommendations for building an integrated system of national statistics that can provide accurate and…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Children from higher-wealth families are more upwardly mobile

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Policy

Children from higher-wealth families are more upwardly mobile (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations APR 19, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Enhanced Child Tax Credit helped U.S. families afford life-enhancing necessities and cope with inflation (opens in a new tab)

Blog APR 2, 2024

Amid ongoing congressional debate over expanding the Child Tax Credit for U.S. families, it’s important to understand why the fears about the expansion of that tax credit in 2021 were…

By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Academic

Spending Responses to the Child Tax Credit Expansions (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers APR 2, 2024

This article summarizes the literature that studied how people used the 2021 advance Child Tax Credit. Four primary findings emerged. Families more frequently reporting paying down debt during the first…

By: Jonathan Fisher (opens in a new tab), Jake Schild (opens in a new tab), David S. Johnson

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Academic

Request for Proposals: How effective was the fiscal response to the COVID-19 recession for workers? (opens in a new tab)

RFPs MAR 18, 2024

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union address, the U.S. economy is strong (opens in a new tab)

Blog FEB 21, 2024

On March 7, President Joe Biden will deliver the 2024 State of the Union address to the U.S. Congress and the American public, in which he will tout his economic…

Visualizations FEB 20, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 caused permanent damage to U.S. GDP

View Chart

Policy

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 caused permanent damage to U.S. GDP (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations FEB 20, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

New Circular A-4 offers opportunities for researchers interested in disaggregating the costs and benefits of U.S. regulations (opens in a new tab)

Blog FEB 1, 2024

This column is adapted from remarks I made at the Allied Social Sciences Associations 2024 annual meeting, held earlier this year in San Antonio, Texas, as part of a panel…

By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Distributional weighting in regulatory cost-benefit analysis reflects state of the science and would even the playing field for low-income Americans

View Chart

Policy

Distributional weighting in regulatory cost-benefit analysis reflects state of the science and would even the playing field for low-income Americans (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 31, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The Biden administration’s new regulatory cost-benefit guidelines encourage agencies to better account for inequality

View Chart

Policy

The Biden administration’s new regulatory cost-benefit guidelines encourage agencies to better account for inequality (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 31, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

New research doesn’t overturn consensus on rising U.S. income inequality (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JAN 10, 2024

New research from Gerald Auten at the U.S. Treasury Department and David Splinter at the U.S. Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation makes the counter-to-conventional-wisdom claim that U.S. income inequality has…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Auten and Splinter assign more and more in-kind transfers to the bottom 50 percent’s income

View Chart

Policy

Auten and Splinter assign more and more in-kind transfers to the bottom 50 percent’s income (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 9, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Fiscal income, the income that is visible in individual tax data, has become much more concentrated

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Policy

Fiscal income, the income that is visible in individual tax data, has become much more concentrated (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 9, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Auten and Splinter find lower levels of top 1% income share over time when compared to Piketty, Saez, and Zucman

View Chart

Policy

Auten and Splinter find lower levels of top 1% income share over time when compared to Piketty, Saez, and Zucman (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 9, 2024

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Watch Now

Academic

Request for proposals: Research grants for early career scholars (opens in a new tab)

RFPs NOV 30, 2023

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Testimony by Shayna Strom before the Senate Budget Committee (opens in a new tab)

Blog SEP 20, 2023

Chairman Whitehouse, Ranking Member Grassley, and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I am the President and CEO of the Washington Center for Equitable…

By: Shayna Strom (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security

The U.S. has had the strongest growth of any G7 country since the beginning of the pandemic

View Chart

Policy

The U.S. has had the strongest growth of any G7 country since the beginning of the pandemic (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations SEP 20, 2023

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security

More Black men workers and Latino workers are employed now than prior to the coronavirus pandemic

View Chart

Policy

More Black men workers and Latino workers are employed now than prior to the coronavirus pandemic (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations SEP 20, 2023

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security

Employment recovered much more quickly after the COVID-19 recession than after previous recessions

View Chart

Policy

Employment recovered much more quickly after the COVID-19 recession than after previous recessions (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations SEP 20, 2023

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security

Investment in care infrastructure could yield twice as many new jobs as investment in physical infrastructure alone

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Policy

Investment in care infrastructure could yield twice as many new jobs as investment in physical infrastructure alone (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations SEP 19, 2023

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security

Policy

The effects of the expanded Child Tax Credit on low-income families in the United States (opens in a new tab)

Blog AUG 2, 2023

Childhood poverty is a stubborn problem in the United States. About 11 million U.S. children lived in poverty prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, accounting for nearly one-third of the impoverished…

By: Jesus Torres (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Policy

Short-term effects of the expanded Child Tax Credit on U.S. labor force participation amid the COVID-19 pandemic (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 26, 2023

There is a common politicized thread to arguments against expanding the federal antipoverty Child Tax Credit program permanently and to the justifications that a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court…

By: Sullivan Anderson (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Academic

The Short-Term Labor Supply Response to the Expanded Child Tax Credit (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers JUL 26, 2023

We estimate the extensive and intensive margin labor supply response to the monthly Child Tax Credit disbursed in 2021 as a part of the American Rescue Plan Act. Using Current…

By: Brandon Enriquez (opens in a new tab), Damon Jones (opens in a new tab), Ernest V. Tedeschi

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Academic

Disparities in Pollution Capitalization Rates: The Role of Direct and Systemic Discrimination (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers JUL 20, 2023

We examine how exogenous changes in exposure to air pollution over the past two decades have altered the disparities in home values between Black and White homeowners. We find that…

By: Joshua S. Graff Zivin, Gregor Singer (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity

Policy

Algorithmic wage discrimination requires policy solutions that enforce predictability and the U.S. spirit of equal pay for equal work (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 12, 2023

U.S. consumers generally believe that gig workers who labor for companies such as Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. are free to set their own hours and thus able to…

By: Veena Dubal (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power

Average income growth no longer represents the fortunes of most Americans

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Issue Briefs MAR 2, 2023

For centuries, Indigenous communities in the United States have faced devastating poverty. American Indians and Alaska Natives today experience the highest rate of poverty, at 25 percent, of any major…

By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

American Indians and Alaska Natives have the nighest unbanked rate compared to other racial groups

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Policy

American Indians and Alaska Natives have the nighest unbanked rate compared to other racial groups (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations MAR 1, 2023

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

While housing and investments account for most wealth among other races in the United States, most of AIAN wealth is held in vehicle value

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Policy

While housing and investments account for most wealth among other races in the United States, most of AIAN wealth is held in vehicle value (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations MAR 1, 2023

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Native American wealth is significantly lower than wealth of other racial groups in the United States

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Policy

Native American wealth is significantly lower than wealth of other racial groups in the United States (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations MAR 1, 2023

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

U.S. income and wealth inequality are no longer increasing, but a return to the equitable levels of the mid-20th century isn’t likely anytime soon (opens in a new tab)

Blog JAN 17, 2023

Five or 6 years ago, economists and pundits frequently debated whether the incomes of low- and middle-class households in the United States were stagnating. I wrote about it, and I…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. income growth from 2007 to 2019 was relatively even across household income deciles

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Policy

U.S. income growth from 2007 to 2019 was relatively even across household income deciles (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 17, 2023

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. incomes for households in the bottom 50 percent have benefitted most from transfer payments since 2007

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Policy

U.S. incomes for households in the bottom 50 percent have benefitted most from transfer payments since 2007 (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 17, 2023

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

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Policy

fig 3 (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JAN 17, 2023

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The share of wealth held by the top 10 percent of U.S. households leveled off around 2015

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Working Papers NOV 8, 2022

Does the growth of renewable energy benefit US workers, and which workers stand to benefit the most? Until now, evidence on green energy jobs has been limited due to measurement…

By: E. Mark Curtis (opens in a new tab), Ioana Marinescu (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity

Clean energy jobs are more plentiful in communities where fossil fuels are extracted

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Policy

Clean energy jobs are more plentiful in communities where fossil fuels are extracted (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 7, 2022

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity

Wind and solar jobs tend to have slightly different occupational breakdowns than fossil fuel jobs

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Policy

Wind and solar jobs tend to have slightly different occupational breakdowns than fossil fuel jobs (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 7, 2022

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity

Wind and solar jobs differ from jobs in other sectors of the U.S. labor market

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Policy

Wind and solar jobs differ from jobs in other sectors of the U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 7, 2022

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity

New clean energy jobs in the United States are growing rapidly

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Policy

New clean energy jobs in the United States are growing rapidly (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations NOV 7, 2022

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity

Policy

What federal statistical agencies can do to improve survey response rates among Hispanic communities in the United States (opens in a new tab)

Blog OCT 14, 2022

Between 2010 and 2020, the Hispanic American population grew 23 percent, making it one of the fastest-growing communities in the United States. According to the 2020 decennial census, Hispanic Americans…

By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Latinos and American Indians or Alaskan Natives were disproportionately undercounted in the 2020 census

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Policy

Latinos and American Indians or Alaskan Natives were disproportionately undercounted in the 2020 census (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 14, 2022

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Coastal and Southwestern states have the highest share of Hispanic Americans

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Policy

Coastal and Southwestern states have the highest share of Hispanic Americans (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 14, 2022

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Equitable Growth provides comments to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis on its new distributing personal income report (opens in a new tab)

Blog OCT 5, 2022

In December 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released a report that studied the feasibility of releasing its distributing personal income product on a quarterly basis. This feasibility study…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Watch Now

Policy

Better data collection can help lift the LGBTQ+ community out of economic hardship in the United States (opens in a new tab)

Videos SEP 15, 2022

Over the past 2-plus years amid the COVID-19 pandemic, widespread evidence has underscored the reality that various communities and demographic groups in the United States experience socioeconomic hardships differently. Numerous…

By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Bisexual women and transgender people face the highest rates of poverty in the United States

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Factsheets AUG 10, 2022

As inflationary pressure continues to cause higher prices for U.S. families, policymakers and economists alike continue to debate whether the United States is entering—or already entered, or will soon enter—a…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Top earners rapidly recovered from the Great Recession, while most Americans languished in poor growth

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Blog AUG 1, 2022

On July 11, the National Bureau of Economic Research kicked off its summer institute, an annual 3-week conference featuring discussions and paper presentations on various topics in economics, including environmental…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

After the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, migration away from high-tax states increased significantly – updated

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Policy

After the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, migration away from high-tax states increased significantly – updated (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 28, 2022

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Migration rates for U.S. millionaires were unchanged after the 2017 tax law passed

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Policy

Migration rates for U.S. millionaires were unchanged after the 2017 tax law passed (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 28, 2022

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Taxing the rich: The effect of tax reform and the COVID-19 pandemic on tax flight among U.S. millionaires (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 28, 2022

Taxing the rich is one of the central policy debates in this time of rising inequality. Elite taxation can change the distribution of income in society, support equitable growth, and…

By: Cristobal Young (opens in a new tab), Ithai Lurie (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Blog JUL 18, 2022

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Canada is the first country to release subannual statistics on the distribution of income. Here’s how it was done. (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 7, 2022

Statistics Canada, the umbrella agency for national statistics in Canada, is the first statistical agency in the world to release subannual data on how economic growth is distributed among rich…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Why the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is good economics (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JUN 30, 2022

President Joe Biden, in November 2021, signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law, providing $1.2 trillion in new government investments to create millions of jobs, increase U.S. economic…

By: Michelle Holder (opens in a new tab), Shaun Harrison (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

The impact of different inflationary pressures due to income inequality and racial disparities in the United States today (opens in a new tab)

Videos MAY 26, 2022

The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis recently hosted a conference, “Unequal Inflation Impacts,” at which an illuminating set of presentations and additional research sources explored “the ways inflation puts different…

By: Jonathan Fisher (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Three observations from the kick-off of a new consensus study by the National Academy of Sciences on measuring U.S. economic inequality (opens in a new tab)

Blog MAY 19, 2022

A new National Academy of Sciences panel convened publicly for the first time this week to discuss how statistical agencies should unify and improve the measurement of inequality in income,…

Issue Briefs FEB 24, 2022

Once a year, since March 2020, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis releases its data series on the distribution of growth in personal income with updated annual…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Distributional changes in wages and transfers usually dominate the distributional effects of other streams of income

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Policy

Distributional changes in wages and transfers usually dominate the distributional effects of other streams of income (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations FEB 23, 2022

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Six charts that explain how inequality in the United States changed over the past 20 years (opens in a new tab)

Blog FEB 1, 2022

The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, in late 2021, updated its data series on income inequality in the United States. This update adds data for 2019 and extends the data…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

The U.S. economy is in its fourth decade of rising inequality amid the need for more accurate data on its consequences (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JAN 27, 2022

Economic inequality in the United States continued to rise over the first two decades of the 21st century, according to new data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis—a trend…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Academic

Closing the Innovation Gap in Pink and Black (opens in a new tab)

Working Papers JAN 10, 2022

Recent research shows the negative impact of discrimination not only on the targets of discrimination but also on the economy as a whole. Racial and gender inequality can limit the…

By: Lisa D. Cook, Janet Gerson (opens in a new tab), Jennifer Kuan (opens in a new tab)

Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Policy

Billionaires Income Tax proposal seeks to ensure that U.S. ultra-wealthy pay their fair share in taxes (opens in a new tab)

Blog DEC 17, 2021

There is a growing recognition among policymakers in Washington that something must be done to address the ever-widening U.S. wealth divide, which is especially dramatic when broken out by race.…

By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

Academic · Policy

In Conversation with Jonathan Fisher (opens in a new tab)

In Conversation DEC 16, 2021

By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Jonathan Fisher (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Addressing the ‘double gap’ faced by Black women in the U.S. economy (opens in a new tab)

Blog NOV 30, 2021

In my testimony before the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress this past summer, I presented some of the findings from my 2020 report, “The “Double Gap” and the…

By: Michelle Holder (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

U.S. disability programs provide valuable benefits to low-income recipients across a range of health conditions (opens in a new tab)

Blog NOV 22, 2021

The three components of the U.S. social insurance system serve retirees and those recipients facing challenging health conditions. But all three programs have grown in recent decades, sparking various calls…

By: Manasi Deshpande (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Testimony by Jonathan Fisher before the House Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth (opens in a new tab)

Videos NOV 17, 2021

Statement for the Roundtable Meeting of the Committee on “Measuring Economic Disparity” House Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth November 17, 2021 I am Jonathan Fisher, the…

By: Jonathan Fisher (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Academic · Policy

Issue Briefs OCT 7, 2021

U.S. Gross Domestic Product is one of the most-cited economic statistics and is regularly regarded as shorthand for measuring the economic outcomes of the entire nation. Although it once represented…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Watch Now

Policy

Racial equity in U.S. data collection improves the accuracy of research, policy evaluation, and subsequent policymaking (opens in a new tab)

Videos SEP 28, 2021

The U.S. economy and society are rife with racial and ethnic inequalities, from wealth and income divides to disparities in health and well-being, education, and employment outcomes. These racial and…

By: Randall Akee (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Watch Now

Policy

Diversity in economics and data disaggregation can improve our understanding of the U.S. economy (opens in a new tab)

Videos SEP 27, 2021

Economics as a field is beleaguered by a diversity problem. This is not a new phenomenon, but diversity-related issues are now more widely discussed within many organizations and professional disciplines,…

By: Marie T. Mora (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

A cost-benefit analysis of The American Families Plan’s proposed investment in a nationwide public preschool program (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs SEP 22, 2021

President Joe Biden asked the U.S. Congress to consider investing $200 billion over 10 years in “a national partnership with states to offer free, high-quality, accessible, and inclusive preschool to…

By: Robert Lynch (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Academic · Policy

Blog JUL 19, 2021

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

Climate change among many issues discussed at annual Western Economic Association International conference (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 15, 2021

The Western Economic Association International at the end of June held its 96th annual conference, bringing audiences together for more than 280 concurrent sessions to collaborate, share, and learn from…

By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Taxation

Policy

Fiscal austerity intensifies the increase in inequality after pandemics (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 13, 2021

(This column is reprinted with the permission of the authors. It was first published by voxeu.org on June 3, 2021) In the aftermath of past pandemics, fiscal policy played an…

By: Davide Furceri (opens in a new tab), Prakash Loungani (opens in a new tab), Jonathan Ostry (opens in a new tab), Pietro Pizzuto (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Average inflation targeting by the Federal Reserve and U.S. consumer expectations (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 13, 2021

In August 2020, the Federal Open Market Committee published an amended version of its “Statement on Longer-Run Goals and Monetary Policy Strategy.” In this revised statement, the FOMC reaffirmed its…

By: Carola Binder (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Inflation expectations of less uncertain and highly uncertain U.S. consumers

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Policy

Inflation expectations of less uncertain and highly uncertain U.S. consumers (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 12, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Long-run U.S. consumer inflation uncertainty rose after average inflation targeting announcement by the Federal Reserve in August 2020

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Policy

Long-run U.S. consumer inflation uncertainty rose after average inflation targeting announcement by the Federal Reserve in August 2020 (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 12, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. consumers’ uncertainty about short-run and long-run inflation

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Policy

U.S. consumers’ uncertainty about short-run and long-run inflation (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 12, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

A temporary increase in inflation is not a long-run threat to U.S. economic growth and prosperity (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 9, 2021

After a decade of below-target rates of inflation and the widespread fear of a Japanese-style prolonged economic stagnation with low inflation and zero growth, the incipient economic recovery in the…

By: Francesco D’Acunto (opens in a new tab), Michael Weber (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

In an equal-opportunity America, GDP would be 33.5% higher

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Policy

In an equal-opportunity America, GDP would be 33.5% higher (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 2, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

In an equal-opportunity America, poverty would be substantially lower

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Policy

In an equal-opportunity America, poverty would be substantially lower (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 2, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

In an equal-opportunity America, women and people of color would earn significantly more, and earnings gaps would disappear

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Blog JUN 11, 2021

When President Joe Biden made the case before a joint session of Congress in the spring for two new economic investment packages—a $2 trillion American Jobs Plan and a $1.8…

By: Michael Garvey (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

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Policy

In an equal opportunity America, women and people of color would earn significantly more, and earnings gaps would disappear (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 7, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

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Policy

In an equal opportunity America, poverty would be substantially lower (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUN 7, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Rising credit papers over underconsumption with a rise in inequality

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Policy

Rising credit papers over underconsumption with a rise in inequality (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations MAY 20, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Secular stagnation evident in productivity trends in recent U.S. history

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Policy

Secular stagnation evident in productivity trends in recent U.S. history (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations MAY 20, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Secular stagnation evident in U.S. population trends

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Policy

Secular stagnation evident in U.S. population trends (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations MAY 20, 2021

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

The American anti-austerity tradition (opens in a new tab)

Blog MAY 20, 2021

The financialization of the U.S. economy has directed U.S. savings into more and more unproductive speculative investments. Consumption has become increasingly buoyed by unsustainable “indebted demand.” And the threat of…

By: Robert Manduca (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

How inequities in U.S. taxation can perpetuate systemic racism (opens in a new tab)

Blog APR 20, 2021

The history of discriminatory taxation in the United States is long and storied. Writing on county governments in his in 1901 study, “The Negro Landholder of Georgia,” scholar W.E.B. Du…

By: Shaun Harrison (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Taxation

White families have substantially more wealth than Black and Hispanic families

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Blog MAR 10, 2021

The misclassification of work performed by ride-hailing drivers is rampant in the online platform-based gig economy. Companies such as Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. claim their drivers are independent…

By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)

AI, Tech & Energy Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power

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Blog JAN 14, 2021

This essay is part of Boosting Wages for U.S. Workers in the New Economy, a compilation of 10 essays from leading economic thinkers who explore alternative policies for boosting wages…

By: Randall Akee (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

American Indian workers earn far less than White workers

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Issue Briefs OCT 13, 2020

Homeownership in the United States has long functioned as a wealth equalizer, allowing middle-class families to build wealth while they pay for their housing costs. Because houses have generally appreciated…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab), John Sabelhaus (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The amount of equity U.S. families have in their house has increased for the top 10 percent of income earners, but fallen for most others

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Policy

The amount of equity U.S. families have in their house has increased for the top 10 percent of income earners, but fallen for most others (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 13, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Homeownership for middle-aged U.S. families remains depressed after the Great Recession

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Policy

Homeownership for middle-aged U.S. families remains depressed after the Great Recession (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 9, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. homeownership has declined for most groups but is rising in the top 10 percent of income earners

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Policy

U.S. homeownership has declined for most groups but is rising in the top 10 percent of income earners (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 9, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The retirement savings gap in the United States by race and income widened after the Great Recession of 2007–2009

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Policy

The retirement savings gap in the United States by race and income widened after the Great Recession of 2007–2009 (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 7, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Policy prescriptions for the flawed and unequal retirement savings systems that perpetuate U.S. economic inequality (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs OCT 7, 2020

Outside of homeownership, retirement savings are the most important way middle-class workers and their families build wealth in the United States. But this second pillar of wealth creation is woefully…

By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab), John Sabelhaus (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Percentage of American households who own at least one retirement account remains steady over past 25 years

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Policy

Percentage of American households who own at least one retirement account remains steady over past 25 years (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The number of American working-age families with defined-benefit plans continues downward trend

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Policy

The number of American working-age families with defined-benefit plans continues downward trend (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Millennial households increased their net worth after the Great Recession, but from a very low base

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Policy

Millennial households increased their net worth after the Great Recession, but from a very low base (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations OCT 5, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

New wealth data show that the economic expansion after the Great Recession was a wealthless recovery for many U.S. households (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs OCT 5, 2020

The Federal Reserve’s 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances, or SCF, released last week, shows that the wealth of many U.S. households never recovered from the shock of the Great Recession…

Visualizations OCT 2, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Structural racism and the coronavirus recession highlight why more and better U.S. data need to be widely disaggregated by race and ethnicity (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs SEP 24, 2020

The enduring legacy of structural racism in the United States is not news to the multihued communities of color across our nation. And in these Black, Latinx, Native American, Asian…

Visualizations SEP 22, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement Taxation

Policy

The hidden costs of stock-market-first U.S. economic policies (opens in a new tab)

Blog SEP 22, 2020

The idea that sound U.S. economic policy begins and ends with a strong stock market is becoming pervasive. Advocates of what I call the stock-market-first approach want you to focus…

By: John Sabelhaus (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Main Street’s workers, families, and small businesses are now suffering as Wall Street prospers from policies to fight the coronavirus recession (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs SEP 17, 2020

In San Antonio, 10,000 cars lined up to get bags of groceries from a local food bank, waiting hours in the heat for help. In New Orleans, advocates chained themselves…

By: Amanda Fischer (opens in a new tab)

Competition & Economic Dynamism Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

What is Gross Domestic Product, and what does it measure? (opens in a new tab)

Blog SEP 2, 2020

Gross Domestic Product growth may once have indicated good fortune for the vast majority of Americans, but over the past several decades, many Americans were left increasingly behind. This reality…

By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Get more money immediately to U.S. families and help them out of the coronavirus recession (opens in a new tab)

Blog SEP 1, 2020

The costs of the deepening coronavirus recession and the benefits of the federal government providing another round of direct economic aid to families are clear. Let’s begin with the mounting…

By: Michael Garvey (opens in a new tab), Claudia Sahm (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Families with little in savings are more likely to spend their payments

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Policy

Families with little in savings are more likely to spend their payments (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 31, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Spending out of direct payments differed in 2020 and 2008

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Issue Briefs AUG 20, 2020

The novel coronavirus pandemic and the recession it caused lay bare the clear links between racial and ethnic economic inequities, structural racism, and the outsized harm of these crises on…

By: Christian Edlagan (opens in a new tab), Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Front-line essential workers are predominately Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, compared to other workers

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Policy

Front-line essential workers are predominately Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, compared to other workers (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 20, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are the highest represented subgroup among essential workers

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Policy

Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are the highest represented subgroup among essential workers (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 20, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Disaggregating Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander front-line workers by subgroups shows wide heterogeneity

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Blog AUG 6, 2020

Prior to the current coronavirus recession, most U.S. economic metrics pointed to a slow but steady nationwide recovery amid an 11-year post-Great Recession run of economic growth. But prosperity was…

By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. economic growth is fueled by the urban West

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Policy

U.S. economic growth is fueled by the urban West (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

$Growth in Northeast and Southern regions powered by mining and fracking$ View Chart

Policy

Growth in Northeast and Southern regions powered by mining and fracking (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Rural U.S. economic growth in the service sector lags urban service growth

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Policy

Rural U.S. economic growth in the service sector lags urban service growth (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Stark regional divide in growth of the U.S. healthcare sector

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Policy

Stark regional divide in growth of the U.S. healthcare sector (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

$Mining and fracking in Northeast and Southern counties drove rural U.S. economic growth$ View Chart

Policy

Mining and fracking in Northeast and Southern counties drove rural U.S. economic growth (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations AUG 6, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Congress must act to help U.S. families facing an income crisis (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 29, 2020

We now have 4.3 million confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the United States. The virus moves fast, and policymakers in Washington move slow. Families across the country face…

By: Claudia Sahm (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Broken plumbing: How systems for delivering economic relief in response to the coronavirus recession failed the U.S. economy (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JUL 29, 2020

Sudden economic contractions are dangerous. Individuals experience income shocks that leave them hungry, sick, and frightened. And if left unchecked, these shocks spread. When people lose income, they stop spending,…

By: Amanda Fischer (opens in a new tab), Alix Gould-Werth (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Paid leave claims in Rhode Island spiked in the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic

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Policy

Paid leave claims in Rhode Island spiked in the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 29, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The Unemployment Insurance taxable wage base has fallen over time

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Policy

The Unemployment Insurance taxable wage base has fallen over time (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 28, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

A generational perspective on recent U.S. homeownership divergence by income and race (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JUL 27, 2020

Between the end of 2012 and the end of 2019, the Federal Reserve Board estimates that the total value of U.S. owner-occupied housing increased nearly 60 percent, from $18.5 trillion…

By: John Sabelhaus (opens in a new tab), Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Homeownership gaps between age cohorts are much larger for those in the bottom 50 percent of income

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Policy

Homeownership gaps between age cohorts are much larger for those in the bottom 50 percent of income (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 27, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Homeownership gaps between age cohorts are relatively small for those in the top 50 percent of income

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Policy

Homeownership gaps between age cohorts are relatively small for those in the top 50 percent of income (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 27, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

White homeowners dominate the U.S. housing market compared to homeowners of color

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Policy

White homeowners dominate the U.S. housing market compared to homeowners of color (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 24, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

U.S. homeownership increased markedly more for the top half of income earners

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Policy

U.S. homeownership increased markedly more for the top half of income earners (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 24, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Younger generations generally have lower homeownership rates at the same age as older generations

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Policy

Younger generations generally have lower homeownership rates at the same age as older generations (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 24, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Household Economic Security Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Did the Paycheck Protection Program work for small businesses across the United States? (opens in a new tab)

Issue Briefs JUL 15, 2020

Across the United States over the past few weeks, we’ve all seen advertisements, received emails, or heard from friends about small businesses trying to inch back to some semblance of…

By: Amanda Fischer (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

The Federal Reserve cuts the federal funds rate during recessions

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Policy

The Federal Reserve cuts the federal funds rate during recessions (opens in a new tab)

Visualizations JUL 13, 2020

Economic Equity & Opportunity Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

Policy

Americans want green spending in federal coronavirus recession relief packages (opens in a new tab)

Blog JUL 7, 2020

Coronavirus recession relief packages now under discussion on Capitol Hill present an opportunity to power an economic rebound and address climate change at the same time. This approach would save…

By: Matto Mildenberger (opens in a new tab), Leah Stokes (opens in a new tab)

Economic Equity & Opportunity Labor, Wages & Worker Power Macroeconomics & Economic Measurement

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