EconoFact Chats

The income tax was established in 1913 with the ratification of the single sentence of the 16th amendment. Tax rules and regulations have undergone many revisions and changes in the 110 years since then, including the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act. One provision of that act, concerning multinational corporations repatriating income, is being challenged in the case Moore v. United States. Oral arguments in that case, which could have far-reaching implications for the tax system, will be heard by the Supreme Court in December. Dan Shaviro of the New York University School of Law, explains the evolution of the income tax system over the past half decade and some of the possible consequences of the Moore decision, including huge revenue losses for the government. Dan is the Wayne Perry Professor of Taxation at NYU. His newest book is 'Bonfires of the American Dream in American Rhetoric, Literature and Film.'

In what ways are children particularly hard hit by poverty? How does growing up poor affect early-life development? Lisa A. Gennetian joins EconoFact Chats to answer these questions, drawing on preliminary results from 'Baby’s First Years,' a large-scale, multi-decade interdisciplinary study on the impact of poverty on brain development among infants. A Principal Investigator at 'Baby's First Years,' Lisa is also the Pritzker Professor of Early Learning Policy Studies at the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University.

The U.S. Congress has stated its intention to extend many of the tax cuts of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act beyond 2025. But, as Kim Clausing highlights, Congress is also likely to rethink some of the act's provisions. Kim joins EconoFact Chats to discuss which parts of the act made for good tax policy, which didn't, and what policy changes could put the U.S. on a path of greater fiscal sustainability. A nationally recognised tax policy expert, Kim is the Eric M. Zolt Professor of Tax Law and Policy at the UCLA School of Law.

China's rise has been among the most consequential economic events of the past half century. Before the reforms begun by Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s, China was among the poorest nations in the world. The transformations over the past 45 years have made it a central player in the world economy. But in the last few years, the Chinese juggernaut has stalled. And while many economies slowed during the COVID pandemic, the downturn in China has been especially acute.  Will the Chinese economy rebound? Adam Posen joins EconoFact Chats to share his thoughts on this and other issues, drawing on his latest Foreign Affairs article ‘The End of China's Economic Miracle.’  Adam is the President of the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Health outcomes in the United States lag behind those in many other rich countries, especially for lower income groups and ethnic and racial minorities. These shortcomings arise even though health care expenditures represent almost one-fifth of this country’s national income. Amy Finkelstein and Liran Einav document the state of health care and health insurance in the United States as well as their suggestions for improvements in their new book 'We've Got You Covered: Rebooting American Health Care.' Amy joins EconoFact Chats to discuss the findings and analysis in her book, and her decades of pathbreaking research on this topic. Amy is the John and Jennie S. MacDonald Professor of Economics at MIT. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Amy was awarded the prestigious John Bates Clark Medal from the American Economic Association in 2012, and a MacArthur “Genius Grant” in 2018.

Binyamin Applebaum of the New York Times, Larry Edelman of the Boston Globe, Scott Horsley of NPR, and Heather Long of the Washington Post join EconoFact Chats for the 9th edition of the podcast's panel discussion with economic journalists. Binyamin, Larry, Scott and Heather focus on inflation, affordable housing, the temporarily averted government shutdown, the auto-workers strike and what that might imply about the union movement, and the ongoing Amazon and Google anti-trust cases.

12.4% of Americans lived in poverty in 2022. The 4.6 percentage point increase over 2021 marks the biggest one-year jump in the poverty rate on record. More strikingly, the rate of child poverty more than doubled from 5.2% in 2021 to 12.4% in 2022. What are the sources of this rise in poverty? What are the human consequences of living poor? And what can be done to reduce poverty? Diane Schanzenbach, among the country's foremost experts on poverty and poverty reduction programs joins EconoFact Chats to address these questions. Diane is the Associate Provost and Senior Advisor to the President for Academic Excellence at the University of Florida. She is currently on leave from her position as Professor in the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University.

Jeffrey Fuhrer joins EconoFact Chats to discuss his new book, 'The Myth That Made Us: How False Beliefs about Racism and Meritocracy Broke Our Economy (and How to Fix It),' highlighting how the unfounded belief that individual success and failure is just a function of hard work, or the lack of it -- what he terms ‘the myth’ -- has shaped policies and public perceptions in ways that have caused economic harm to millions. Jeff also highlights policies that can help remedy longstanding socio-economic disparities. Jeff served for nearly four decades in the Federal Reserve System, first at the Board of Governors in Washington, DC, followed by more than 25 years at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Currently, he is a non-resident fellow at the Brookings Institution, and a Foundation Fellow at the Eastern Bank Foundation.

The Federal Reserve has seen much success in its fight against inflation. The headline rate over the 12 months ending in August 2023 was 3.7%; much lower than the peak of 9.1% in June 2022. Notably, inflation has come down with virtually no rise in unemployment. But it remains higher than the Fed's 2% target. Will reducing inflation by another 1.7 percentage points prove as costless to output and employment? What lessons can the Fed draw from moderate disinflationary episodes in other countries? Peter Blair Henry joins EconoFact Chats to discuss his findings on these issues, drawing on a recent Foreign Affairs article co-authored with Anusha Chari (University of North Carolina). Peter is a Senior Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, and Dean Emeritus of New York University's Stern School of Business.

How can international trade policy be aligned with global commitments to reduce inequality, transition to a clean energy future, and promote sustainable development? Joel Trachtman, a founding partner of the Remaking the Global Trading System for a Sustainable Future Project joins EconoFact Chats to discuss the group’s new report, focusing on the natural links between trade and sustainable development goals as well as how trade policy can reconcile possible trade-offs between economic efficiency and sustainability goals. Joel is the Henry J. Braker Professor of Commercial Law at the Fletcher School, at Tufts University.