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1. Stabilizing Future Fiscal Policy: It's Time to Pull the Trigger

Author:
C. Eugene Steuerle and Rudolph G. Penner
Publication Date:
08-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Fiscal policy is simply out of control. It's not the deficit per se, however—we have had deficits before. Usually, they could be easily contained in subsequent years simply by allowing revenues to grow as the economy expanded while enacting only small or no increases in appropriations for discretionary programs, most of which were newly funded every year. But discretionary programs now constitute less than 40 percent of spending, whereas they were almost 70 percent of spending in 1962. In fiscal year 2006, mandatory spending and interest made up 62 percent of spending.
Topic:
Economics and Government
Political Geography:
United States

2. Replacement Rates and UC Benefit Generosity

Author:
Wayne Vroman
Publication Date:
07-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The cost of unemployment compensation (UC) support payments can be examined within an actuarial framework that recognizes three factors: 1) the economy's underlying unemployment rate, 2) the recipiency rate (the share of the unemployed who receive benefits) and 3) the re placement rate (the ratio of periodic (weekly or monthly) benefit payments to average earnings for the same time period. The present paper operates within this actuarial framework but focuses primarily upon replacement rates.
Topic:
Economics and Government

3. Extension of Saving and Investment Incentives

Author:
Eric Toder
Publication Date:
06-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Thank you for inviting me to testify today at this hearing on extension of the incentives for savings and investment that are scheduled to expire in the next few years. Major tax incentives enacted in 2001 and 2003 that are scheduled to expire and that the Congress may consider renewing include the special lower tax rates for capital gains and dividend income enacted in 2003, and the increase in the annual deduction amount for qualified section 179 property, the savers credit, and the above the line deduction for qualified post-secondary education expenses, all enacted in 2001. The education deduction and the increase in the section 179 deduction expire at the end of this year, the savers credit expires at the end of 2006, and the lower tax rates for capital gains and dividends expire at end of 2008.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Education, and Government

4. Immigrants and TANF: A Look at Immigrant Welfare Recipients in Three Cities

Author:
Karen C. Tumlin and Wendy Zimmermann
Publication Date:
10-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The federal welfare reform act of 1996 (the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, or PRWORA) dramatically revamped the welfare system, turning it into a block grant program run by the states, imposing new, stricter work requirements and setting a five-year lifetime limit on benefit receipt. For immigrants the law did all that and much more. In a major departure from previous policy, the law sharply curtailed noncitizens' eligibility for welfare and other major federal benefits.
Topic:
Government, Human Welfare, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

5. Budget Crisis at the Door

Author:
C. Eugene Steuerle and Rudolph G. Penner
Publication Date:
10-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
In 1995 the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement and Tax Reform concluded that “If we do not plan for the future, entitlement spending promises will exceed financial resources in the next century. The current spending trend is unsustainable … If we fail to act, we have made a choice that threatens the economic future of our children and our nation” (U.S. Congress 1995). Now, well into the next century, we have still failed to act. Yet the problem not only remains, but in many ways has intensified simply because we are years closer to the day of reckoning. Relative to both available revenues and societal needs, we have promised more than we can afford to an elderly and fairly well-off near-elderly population that will soon grow very rapidly as the baby boomers retire and life expectancy continues to increase.
Topic:
Demographics, Economics, and Government
Political Geography:
United States

6. Options to Finance the Additional War Costs

Author:
Leonard E. Burman and Jeff Rohaly
Publication Date:
09-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The President has requested an additional $87 billion to finance the war and reconstruction costs in Iraq. Commentators and some members of Congress have expressed an interest in options to offset these additional costs so as not to add on to the burgeoning budget deficit, which CBO estimates to be $480 billion in fiscal year 2004. This note considers four options to raise approximately enough revenue to finance the additional war costs. The estimates are approximate because they do not account for additional tax avoidance that higher rates might provoke, a significant factor in official revenue estimates.
Topic:
Government, Political Economy, and War
Political Geography:
United States and Iraq

7. Trends in Naturalization

Author:
Michael E. Fix, Jeffrey S. Passel, and Kenneth Sucher
Publication Date:
09-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The Policy Imperative Naturalization is the gateway to citizenship for immigrants and to full membership and political participation in U.S. society. The importance of naturalization—and citizenship—has risen since the mid-1990s, when welfare and illegal immigration reform based access to public benefits and selected rights increasingly on citizenship.
Topic:
Demographics, Government, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

8. Unemployment Protection in Chile

Author:
Wayne Vroman
Publication Date:
08-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Interruptions of earnings caused by unemployment and reductions in the real value of earnings caused by inflation are two important risks that face persons active in the labor market. The following paragraphs discuss these phenomena and the possible mechanisms for addressing the risks that they pose.
Topic:
Economics, Government, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
South America, Latin America, and Chile

9. The New Neighbors: A User's Guide to Data on Immigrants in U.S. Communities

Author:
Randy Capps, Michael E. Fix, Dan Perez-Lopez, and Jeffrey S. Passel
Publication Date:
08-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Immigrant integration is now a key issue for communities across the nation. States and communities that had seen few immigrants as recently as 1990 are now welcoming new arrivals in unprecedented numbers. Although new immigrants continue to settle in the traditional U.S. centers of immigration—including California, Florida, New York, and Texas—the states with the currently fastest growing immigrant populations have not seen similar inflows for almost a century, if ever. According to the 2000 Census, these new destination states include North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee (at the top of the list) and other states in the Southeast, as well as states across the Midwest and up into the Pacific Northwest.
Topic:
Demographics, Government, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States, New York, California, Georgia, Texas, and Florida

10. Participation in a Decentralized Housing Allowance Program in a Transition Economy

Author:
Tatiana Lykova, Sergei Sivaev, Raymond J. Struyk, and Ekaterina Petrova
Publication Date:
05-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
When Russia's housing allowance program, the country's first means-tested program, was introduced in 1994, it was truly innovative. But there were difficulties from the start, many arising from the division of authority for setting program parameters among different levels of government and the potential for variation in the treatment of similar households in different cities. In 1996, the program's original simple basis for benefit determination was seriously impaired by the introduction of different principles for very low-income households. Moreover, local governments have exhibited a willingness to vary benefits from year-to-year, depending on political and budgetary considerations. The analysis presented here documents the impact of these variations on participation rates in a sample of Russian cities. Large inequities are obviously present in the treatment of similar households from city to city. Indeed, it is questionable whether the program as currently configured is fulfilling the social safety net function envisioned for it in the original legislation.
Topic:
Development, Government, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Asia

11. Budget Blues: The Fiscal Outlook and Options for Reform

Author:
William G. Gale, Alan J. Auerbach, Peter Orszag, and Samuel R. Potter
Publication Date:
05-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Establishing a sustainable fiscal policy is central to the nation's long-term economic prospects, but requires a clear understanding of how past and current policies affect future resources. The federal budget should, but does not, provide this information, both because the task is difficult and current accounting practices are deficient. This paper shows that adjusting the official budget for many accounting and economic issues implies a bleak fiscal outlook that presents policymakers with difficult choices. We also explore options to restore fiscal sustainability directly and to improve the budget process that governs fiscal decisions.
Topic:
Demographics, Economics, and Government
Political Geography:
United States

12. Russia's Winter Woes: Tariff Setting for Local Utilities in a Transition Economy

Author:
Sergei Sivaev, Raymond J. Struyk, Valentin Andrianov, and Emin Askerov
Publication Date:
04-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
During the past two winters, breakdowns in district heating services in Russia have grabbed international headlines. In Russia these services and water and sewerage services are the responsibility of municipal governments; these governments set the tariffs for these services. This article examines the tariff-setting process during 1997–2001 for these two services with particular emphasis on the decision process for considering tariff increases. We find that little progress has been made during the transition period in developing the legal base for rational tariff-setting procedures. Overall, tariff increases have been substantially less than the rate of inflation. Statistical analysis confirms that decisionmaking is highly politicized and that in times of extreme inflation tariff increases lag even further behind inflation, with the sector being used as a kind of shock absorber to cushion the full impacts of inflation on the population. There is an obvious acute need for leadership at the national level to address these problems.
Topic:
Development, Energy Policy, and Government
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Asia

13. The Enron Debacle: Lessons for Tax Policy

Author:
Jane G. Gravelle
Publication Date:
02-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The Enron debacle had potential implications in three areas of tax policy: tax-favored retirement plans, stock options, and differences in book versus tax accounting. The most important issue relates to the increasing riskiness of retirement plans that (1) can pay in a lump sum amount, (2) are of the defined contribution variety, and (3) may be excessively concentrated in employer stock. Proposals to remedy this issue even in a limited way may be unsuccessful if they do not address the especially favorable tax treatment of employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). Most stock options do not benefit from preferential treatment, although for both book and tax purposes it may be desirable (and feasible) to recognize compensation payments at the time of grant. Stock options may not be accomplishing their purposes efficiently, and special benefits (such as those for qualified stock options) might either be reconsidered or restricted to plans with desirable features. The spectacle of a purportedly profitable company paying little or no tax has become a common phenomenon. The Enron case suggests the need for more disclosure regarding the sources of book versus tax differences, if not some substantive corporate tax reforms.
Topic:
Economics, Government, and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:
United States

14. How Are Immigrants Faring After Welfare Reform?: Preliminary Evidence from Los Angeles and New York City - Final Report

Author:
Randy Capps, Michael Fix, Dan Perez-Lopez, Jeffrey Passel, Leighton Ku, Chris Furgiuele, Rajeev Ramchand, and Scott McNiven
Publication Date:
02-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
In 1996, debates about welfare reform and immigration converged and reshaped federal policies about the eligibility of legally admitted immigrants for means-tested public benefits programs, including the Food Stamp Program (FSP), Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Before the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) was enacted in 1996, legal immigrants were eligible for benefits on terms similar to those of native-born citizens. The new law significantly limited the eligibility of legally-admitted immigrants for means-tested federal benefit programs, particularly immigrants entering the United States after the welfare reform law was passed in August 1996.
Topic:
Government, Human Welfare, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

15. Measuring Unemployment Benefit Recipiency in New Zealand

Author:
Wayne Vroman
Publication Date:
07-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
This is a paper about measurement. It originated within a project that is examining the performance of unemployment compensation (UC) programs from a cross-national perspective. At the current time the larger project has assembled data on the UC programs of more than 20 countries along with supporting labor market data. Within the set of OECD countries, the project has singled out for particular attention six English speaking countries: Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. An analysis of the unemployment protection systems in these six countries was recently completed by Brusentsev (2002).
Topic:
Economics, Government, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand

16. Limited English Proficient Students and High-Stakes Accountability Systems

Author:
Michael Fix and Jorge Ruiz-de-Velasco
Publication Date:
04-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
In 1994 Congress required all states to implement comprehensive accountability systems for schools receiving federal funds under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). This new federal requirement responded to civil rights advocates' concerns that schools serving large numbers of poor, minority, and limited English proficient (LEP) students set lower standards for their education and thus ratified lower expectations for their performance. These changes in the ESEA made a dramatic break with past practice by requiring states to replace minimum standards for poor and academically disadvantaged children with challenging standards for all students. New accountability systems were to be based on state-established content standards for reading and math, include assessments aligned with those standards, and would require that states hold all students to the same performance standards.
Topic:
Education, Government, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

17. Mortgage Default Insurance in the U.S.: Implications for Russia

Author:
Raymond Struyk and Douglas E. Whiteley
Publication Date:
03-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The objective of this paper is to introduce the concept of mortgage default insurance as developed in the United States into the context of Russian mortgage lending. The first part of the paper discusses the broad principles and operations of mortgage default insurance offered by private companies as it works in the United States. The pricing of this product and the preconditions for offering such insurance are highlighted. The second section outlines the operation of the U.S. government-supported default insurance offered by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The final part applies the foregoing information to the situation in Russia today and concludes that the conditions necessary for launching mortgage default insurance do not currently exist in the country. Nevertheless, there are a number of essential actions that can and should be taken over the next several months to put Russia on the road to establishing such insurance in a few years. The paper finishes with a possible action plan for the next two years.
Topic:
Development, Government, and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, Europe, and Asia

18. The Scope and Impact of Welfare Reform's Immigrant Provisions

Author:
Michael Fix and Jeffrey Passel
Publication Date:
01-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
For immigrants, welfare reform went well beyond conditioning access to cash benefits on work. Rather, the law set out a comprehensive scheme for determining immigrant eligibility for a wide range of social benefits that are provided by governments at all levels. Reform represented a major departure from prior policy by making citizenship more central to the receipt of benefits, by granting the states rather than the federal government the power to determine immigrant eligibility for benefits, and by drawing a sharp distinction between immigrants arriving before and after PRWORA's enactment on August 22, 1996.
Topic:
Government, Human Welfare, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

19. Strengthening Local Administration of Social Assistance in Russia

Author:
Raymond J. Struyk and L. Jerome Gallagher
Publication Date:
11-2001
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
A hallmark of the administration of social assistance under the socialist regimes in Eastern Europe and the USSR was the universal nature of eligibility for benefits, either to all citizens or to categories of deserving citizens, e.g., the physically handicapped. During the transition period since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation has taken limited steps to improve the targeting of benefits. The challenge to improvement is acute because the administration of the great majority of programs rests with agencies of local government. The question addressed here is how amenable local program administration is to improved targeting and more progressive program administration in general. Presented is an analysis of the results of assessments of two pilot programs implemented in two Russian cities in 2000–2001. The “school lunch pilot” introduced means testing in the school lunch program on a citywide basis; eligible families receive cash payments and all children pay the same price for their lunches in cash. The “jobs pilot” is a new, local means-tested program that provides cash support to families while unemployed workers search for work; continued receipt of funds is conditional on a minimum job search effort. We find that both programs were successfully implemented and that there was little resistance to the sharper targeting. On the other hand, a variety of problems with program administration were identified—problems that need to be addressed if program integrity and credibility are to be maintained.
Topic:
Economics, Government, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Asia

20. Australian Unemployment Protection: Challenges and New Directions

Author:
Wayne Vroman and Vera Brusentsev
Publication Date:
07-2001
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
This paper examines Australia's scheme of unemployment protection and makes some comparisons with unemployment protection in the United States of America. A major concern of the paper is to understand the differences in unemployment duration between these two economies. Policies followed in the United States intended to reduce duration are reviewed for possible applicability in Australia.
Topic:
Economics, Government, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
United States, Australia, and Southeast Asia

21. The Integration of Immigrant Families in the United States

Author:
Michael Fix, Wendy Zimmermann, and Jeffrey Passel
Publication Date:
07-2001
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
What do we know about the integration of immigrant families within the United States—the progress these families are making and their reception in the communities where they settle? How are immigrants affected by the nation's integration policies or lack thereof? What directions might immigrant integration and the policies governing it take in the future?
Topic:
Government, Human Welfare, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

22. Local Administration of Social Assistance Programs in Russia

Author:
Raymond J. Struyk and Burton Richman
Publication Date:
10-2000
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Competent administration is fundamental to successful reform of social assistance programs in transition economies. Only with such administration is there assurance that benefits are being delivered as intended in enabling legislation. Moreover, the perceived efficiency and fairness of administration influences the public's views of the new programs. In the Russian Federation local governments have primary responsibility for the administration of social assistance programs enacted by all levels of government
Topic:
Economics, Government, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Asia

23. Regional Economic Development in Eastern Europe: An Example from Poland

Author:
Raymond Struyk and Sharon Cooley
Publication Date:
07-2000
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Small cities and towns are rapidly being recognized as key actors on the road to sustained economic development in the countries of Eastern Europe. Whether they are able to execute this central role will depend on their being able to undertake essential investments—which in turn requires the availability of finance and the strengthening of local administrative capacity.
Topic:
Development, Economics, and Government
Political Geography:
Europe and Eastern Europe

24. Illegal Aliens in Federal, State, and Local Criminal Justice Systems

Author:
Rebecca Clark and Scott Anderson
Publication Date:
06-2000
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
With the rising concern about the numbers and impacts of illegal aliens in the United States — as evidenced by the sweeping passage of Proposition 187 in California, the immigrant provisions in 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), and Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA) — criminal illegal aliens have become a subject of particular focus. These individuals have not only entered or resided in the United States without the knowledge or permission of the U.S. government, but, while here, they have also violated the laws of the nation, its states, or municipalities.
Topic:
Government, International Law, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States

25. The Future of the Public Sector--The Challenges for Policy Research in a Changing Environment

Author:
George Galster
Publication Date:
09-1998
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
As we approach the 21st century, the public seems increasingly disenchanted with the record of government, and less and less inclined to believe in the value of empirical analysis as a guide to action. Evidence of the loss of confidence in the public sector's ability to operate effectively and efficiently is found in opinion polls, falling rates of electoral participation, and the rising influence of "anti-government" politicians. In such an environment, it is useful to reflect on the historical role that applied social science has played in the public sector and the role it might play in the future.
Topic:
Government
Political Geography:
United States

26. Immigrants in New York: Their Legal Status, Incomes, and Taxes

Author:
Jeffrey S. Passel and Rebecca L. Clark
Publication Date:
04-1998
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
This report provides essential demographic and economic information on legal immigrants residing in New York State and addresses significant shortcomings in the existing data for immigrants and in analyses of fiscal impacts of legal immigrants. It focuses on four major issues: the size of the legal immigrant populations; the characteristics of legal status groups, including both legal and undocumented populations; the incomes and taxes paid by immigrant populations and natives; and the economic adaptation of immigrants and their descendants.
Topic:
Government, International Law, and Migration
Political Geography:
United States and New York

27. The Number and Cost of Immigrants on Medicaid: National and State Estimates

Author:
Leighton Ku and Bethany Kessler
Publication Date:
09-1998
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
This work was conducted under Subtask 2.2.12 of HHS Contract HHS-100-94-1009. Many constructive comments were provided by staff of the Department of Health and Human Services, including Linda Sanches, David Nielsen, Penelope Pine and Bob Tomlinson. We gratefully acknowledge data and advice made available by Ron North and Roger Buchanan of the Health Care Financing Administration and Charles Scott of the Social Security Administration. Many colleagues at the Urban Institute offered useful advice or data, including Brian Bruen, Rebecca Clark, Teresa Coughlin, Linda Giannarelli, Jeff Passel, Karen Tumlin and Wendy Zimmerman. All opinions expressed are the authors' and should not be interpreted as opinions of the Urban Institute or the Department of Health and Human Services.
Topic:
Government and Migration
Political Geography:
United States