Research Library

Baker Institute Rice Faculty Scholar and University Professor Moshe Vardi analyzes three recent crises — the 2021 winter storm in Texas, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Boeing 737 Max software failure — that highlight the cost of valuing efficiency over resilience and provide lessons for bringing society into balance.

Energy experts suggest a few market design remedies to improve weatherization incentives following the deadly Texas freeze in 2021.

In this paper, the author examines past attempts at immigration reform in the United States, especially as they pertain to the nation’s undocumented population. Analyzing these early reform efforts could be deeply instructive for the prospects of President Biden’s U.S. Citizenship Act and reveals both durable patterns and new developments that could shape the chances for legislative breakthroughs.

As the Budget Control Act nears expiry, it is important to reflect on its effectiveness — does the BCA provide a framework for curtailing unsustainable deficits and moving to a sustainable fiscal policy?  Read the authors' analysis at the Baker Institute Blog.

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?

Public finance fellow Joyce Beebe discusses the tax policy considerations of an increasingly mobile workforce, including state tax and regulatory issues, reimbursement for home office expenses and workplace benefits.

The authors assert that the time is ripe for the United States and Europe to take the lead on shepherding a systems-level change in the recycling market, strengthened by government regulation and legislation. They examine the economic, social, and environmental impacts of mismanaged waste and argue that the Covid-19 pandemic could serve as a catalyst for action toward a global, circular economy.

Parental stress, which is heightened during natural disasters, can produce negative physiological responses in the developing brains of their infants and young children. This irreversibly alters the child’s brain structure, impacting their long-term prospects for good health and academic and economic success. Now is the time to institute policies and practices that mitigate the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the next generation, write the authors,