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Using microsimulation, we estimate the effects of three policy proposals that would alter Social Security’s eligibility rules or benefit structure to reflect changes in women’s labor force activity, marital patterns, and differential mortality among the aged. First, we estimate a set of options related to the duration of marriage required to receive divorced spouse and survivor benefits. Second, we estimate the effects of an earnings sharing proposal with survivor benefits, in which benefits are based entirely on earned benefits with spouses sharing their earnings during years of marriage. Third, we estimate the effects of adjusting benefits to reflect the increasing differential life expectancy by lifetime earnings. The results advance our understanding of the distributional effects of these alternative policy options on projected benefits and retirement income, including poverty and supplemental poverty status, of divorced and widowed women aged 60 or older in 2030. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A microeconomics principles course employing random assignment across three sections with different teaching models is used to explore learning outcomes as measured by a cumulative final exam for students who participate in traditional face-to-face classroom instruction, blended face-to-face and online instruction with reduced instructor contact time, and a purely online instructional format. Evidence indicates learning outcomes were reduced for students in the purely online section relative to those in the face-to-face format by 5 to 10 points on a cumulative final exam. No statistically significant differences in outcomes are observed for students in the blended relative to the face-to-face section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In addition to existing model specification tests based on over identifying information from pre- program periods, this paper conducts a new nonparametric test based on the concept of unconditional bounding. This test has the advantage that it does not require pre-program information on participants. The nonparametric bounding test yields similar information about model misspecification to the standard test based on over identifying information. As an illustration, we apply the test to administrative records from the Jobs First experiment in Connecticut. Records on other welfare recipients are used to provide quasi-experimental panel regression estimates of the impact of time limiting benefits on labor market earnings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the research and policy implications and debates on the class size and student outcomes in the U.S. It states that financial pressure on U.S. schools caused by decreased funding and increased enrollment make them maintain their existing class size. It says that studies on the relation between student learning and class size does not isolate the causal effect of the class size. The article also discusses class-size reduction policies, a randomized experiment in Tennessee measuring the impact of class size in U.S. schools, and the class size policy in California.

The article offers information on the impacts of the Great Recession on the labor markets in the U.S. It considers policies that could be applied to promote job growth during and after a severe recession by altering labor supply incentives for workers and labor demand incentives for employers. It explores subsidies to individuals to get into the labor market, such as worker subsidies through the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in the U.S., and subsidies to hire employees, including hiring credits.

Provides statistics on the United States' national debt and the budget deficit and warns of the dangers to the next generation if excessive federal borrowing does not stop now. (IW)

Presents an introduction to the series of articles about inequality in the United States published in the September 1, 2003 issue of "Journal of Income Distribution."

An introduction is presented which discusses impact factors and new editors for the journal.

The article focuses on the debate at the Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy in New York University. It mentions several participants of the debate including Stephen L. Ross, Paul Willen and Vicki Been. It cites several topics being discussed including the factors of foreclosure crisis, federal policy response to it and status of mortgage lending.

The article addresses the issues concerning the conceptual approaches and evolution of policy analysis.

The article offers contrasting opinions regarding various fiscal issues concerning Medicare. Joseph Antos from the American Enterprise Institute mentions that failure to implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's (PPACA's) Medicare cuts would increase program spending faster than expected. Theodore Marmor from the Yale University, Jonathan Oberlander from the University of North Carolina, and Joseph White from Case Western Reserve University say that Medicare spending must be subjected to budgetary control. Antos states that the enactment of many changes in Medicare's statutes by the U.S. Congress and the many regulations issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reflect the uncertainty towards the achievement of the expectations for Medicare.

Discusses President Bill Clinton's proposal to increase the minimum wage from $4.25 to $5.15. How the hike will harm the working poor it is intended to help; 1991 hike's cost to employers; Percentage of the 1991 rise which went to families with incomes below 150% of poverty line; Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program; How EITC benefits the working poor; Obstacle to fixing the EITC.

This paper provides early evidence of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on minority unemployment in the United States. In the first month following March adoptions of social distancing measures by states, unemployment rose to 14.5% but a much higher 24.4% when we correct for potential data misclassification noted by the BLS. Using the official definition, unemployment in April 2020 among African-Americans rose by less than what would have been anticipated (to 16.6%) based on previous recessions, and the long-term ordering of unemployment across racial/ethnic groups was altered with Latinx unemployment (18.2%) rising for the first time to the highest among major groups. Difference-in-difference estimates confirm that the initial gap in unemployment between whites and blacks in April was not different than in periods prior to the pandemic; however, the racial gap expanded as unemployment for whites declined in the next two months but was largely stagnant for blacks. The initially large gap in unemployment between whites and Latinx in April was sustained in May and June as unemployment declined similarly for both groups. Non-linear decompositions show a favorable industry distribution partly protected black employment during the early stages of the pandemic, but that an unfavorable occupational distribution and lower average skills levels placed them at higher risk of job losses. An unfavorable occupational distribution and lower skills contributed to a sharply widened Latinx-white unemployment gap that moderated over time as rehiring occurred. These findings of disproportionate impacts on minority unemployment raise important concerns regarding lost earnings and wealth, and longer-term consequences of the pandemic on racial inequality in the United States., (© 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)