America Owes $10 Trillion! No, $50 Trillion! Let Me Explain. Commentary from Donald Marron Posted: January 26, 2012In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses the estimates of America's debt which vary by tens of trillions of dollars, depending on how you count. The bottom line: It's deep but not yet fatal.
Opportunity Still Has Racial Hue Opinion from Margaret Simms Posted: January 19, 2012Children are more likely to succeed if they have a stable home environment, adequate nutrition and the opportunity to get a good education. Unfortunately, nearly 50 years after the march on Washington, opportunity still has a racial dimension, argues Institute fellow Margaret Simms in this commentary for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Reaffirming the Work Requirement for Noncustodial Parents as Part of TANF Reauthorization Commentary from Elaine Sorensen Posted: December 22, 2011Research shows that work programs for noncustodial parents can increase employment and child support payments. Yet very few state TANF programs provide these work activities even though the estimated cost of implementing a requirement is zero. Congress needs to reaffirm its intent to impose a work requirement on noncustodial parents through the child support program and clearly state that child support funds may be used to fund the work programs.
Twelve Days of Christmas Hopes for Tough Economy, Deadlocked Congress Commentary from Donald Marron Posted: December 20, 2011In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses hopes for the global economy and the political leaders struggling to keep it on an even keel.
Asset Management: An International Perspective Commentary from Olga Kaganova Posted: November 01, 2011This commentary reflects on a profound impact that the fiscal crisis has on management of public property and overall lack of advanced asset management practices at local governments even though 65-99 percent of the value of the wealth owned on the taxpayers' behalf is concentrated in public land, built-up property and infrastructure.
Real Tax Reform: Flat-Tax Simplicity with a Progressive Twist Commentary from Donald Marron Posted: November 28, 2011In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron agrees that there are good reasons for a simpler tax system, as found in the flat-tax plans of GOP hopefuls Perry, Gingrich, and Cain. But they need to be made more progressive to amount to real tax reform that can pass muster politically.
Asset Management: An International Perspective Commentary from Olga Kaganova Posted: November 23, 2011In this commentary for The Guardian - online, senior fellow Olga Kaganova discusses how local governments don't usually have advanced asset management practices even though 65-99 percent of the value of the wealth owned on the taxpayers' behalf is concentrated in land, built-up property and infrastructure.
Congress Begs a Crisis to Fix the Debt Commentary from Rudolph G. Penner Posted: November 28, 2011In a contribution to the CNNMoney.com, Rudolph Penner discusses the super committee's failure to fix the deficit.
The Averages Can Be Misleading: Older Americans and Poverty Commentary from Sheila R. Zedlewski Posted: November 09, 2011In this commentary for New York Times' Room for Debate, Institute fellow Sheila Zedlewski explains that many of the nation's 41 million seniors live in or very near poverty and many have assets mostly tied up in their houses. Policy makers must be ever mindful of that diversity when considering changes in policy that would affect retirement income security.
How the Government Can Solve the Housing Crisis Commentary from Robert Cherry,
Robert I. Lerman Posted: November 04, 2011Foreclosed homes are a major drag on the housing market and a reason why housing prices continue to fall and new housing construction is stalled. Institute fellow Robert Lerman and Brooklyn College's Robert Cherry explain, in a commentary for CNN.com, an innovative way a million of these properties could provide families with housing instead of sitting empty, take pressure off rental rates, and boost construction jobs.
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