Research Library

Public health and economic measures enacted to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and mitigate the financial impact on families have unintended consequences for low-income women and their children. The authors explain why.

Fellow Joyce Beebe analyzes the evolving landscape of crowdfunding and considers the tax treatment of funds generated through platforms like GoFundMe and Kickstarter.

As U.S. obesity rates continue to climb, policymakers debate whether federal food assistance funds should be used to buy candy and soda. The author examines both sides of the issue.

Energy fellow Rachel A. Meidl examines federal and international efforts to assess the safe transport of crude oil by rail and to specifically consider the roles of vapor pressure and volatility in accident scenarios.

There is a growing global momentum to address the critical economic and environmental problem of plastic waste management. Fellow Rachel A. Meidl discusses the key elements and causes of this problem and explores policy actions for reducing the reliance on single-use plastics.

The 2018 utility fires north of Boston revealed opportunities for PHMSA to reassess and remodel strategic enterprise operations that ensure continuous improvement and sustainability in business practices, regulation review and development, collaboration across the agency, and transparency, writes fellow Rachel A. Meidl.

On August 31, 2018, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the shared goal of accelerating and streamlining the permit application review process for proposed LNG facilities. Fellow Rachel A. Meidl explores the significance and possible impact of this MOU.

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts offers a starting point for compromise to revitalize the corporate income tax, fellows Jorge Barro and Joyce Beebe write in this issue brief.

Women in Egypt achieved a historic increase in their legislative representation in 2015, securing 14.9 percent of seats in parliament. In this brief, Cairo University professor Mazen Hassan analyzes transcripts of parliamentary sessions to determine whether this increase in female parliamentarians had a noticeable impact on Egypt’s legislative agenda.

Fellow Joyce Beebe examines the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2018 ruling that opens the door for states to collect sales taxes from remote sellers that do not have a physical presence in the state.