Research Library

The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, which became law in mid-March, left out the mandate to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, but it did lead to an open policy discussion about current minimum wage standards. In a post for the Baker Institute Blog, public finance fellow Joyce Beebe considers some of the pros and cons of increasing the minimum wage and possible future developments.

As the Biden administration confronts a difficult economic environment, experts at the Center for Public Finance highlight key policy levers Congress might use to stabilize the U.S. fiscal situation and propose three main dimensions on which fiscal policy proposals should be evaluated to ensure transparency.

In late July, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar delivered a bleak economic outlook for the state’s economy: the amount of general revenue funds available for the current biennium is expected to be $11.5 billion less than originally estimated. Should the state tap into its rainy day fund to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and facilitate a stable recovery?

The Covid-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for resettled refugees in the U.S. and exposed underlying vulnerabilities that particularly impact refugee women and children, as well as the organizations that work to support them. The authors examine the difficulties facing refugees in the U.S. and offer policy recommendations that may help them.

The authors explore the health barriers and vulnerabilities of undocumented immigrants during the coronavirus pandemic, reveal the gaps in the Covid-19 relief bills and consider the implications for immigrant children.

Fellow Vivian Ho discusses the sources she's following that shape her thoughts on how long the pandemic will last and what policy actions seem most promising. Baker Institute Blog: https://bit.ly/3aRTDrF

The authors explain why $100 billion allocated by the CARES act to compensate health care providers for unreimbursed expenses and lost revenue from may be woefully inadequate.

In the second of a series of blogs on the coronovirus outbreak, the authors sound a note of cautious optimism: "We hope for a relatively optimistic outlook for the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, with the quick realization of all modifying interventions: earlier and broader testing, strict preventive hygienic and societal measures, a safe and effective vaccine, and effective therapies to treat the virus."  Read more at the Baker Institute Blog.

How might the impending national debt crisis play out in the foreseeable future? Jorge Barro explains in the Baker Institute Blog.

Expanded “payment bundles” for the treatment of end stage kidney disease did not in general increase the risk of closure by dialysis facilities, the authors conclude.