Publications -- Policy Backgrounder

Aug 07, 2000

BG #153 – School Choice In The Courts

The need for alternatives to traditional public schools is clear. The alternatives must be able to withstand challenges to their constitutionality.

Feb 28, 2000

BG #152 – Why the Social Security Earnings Penalty Should Be Repealed

The Social Security earnings test is among the most unfair and counterproductive policies ever imposed by the federal government. On the one hand, we are continually told that workers have a "right" to Social Security whenever there is a proposal to modify cost of living adjustments. But on the other hand, we take away benefits from many seniors simply because they have chosen to work past the normal retirement age.

Feb 04, 2000

BG #151 – On Reforming Medicare

This Backgrounder discusses the proposal for Medicare reform that was developed by a bipartisan and bicameral group of members on the Medicare Commission.

Aug 18, 1999

BG #150 – Why Death Taxes Should Be Abolished

While the tax is insignificant in terms of federal revenue, it is very significant economically. It wastes resources. It discourages work, saving and investment. And it does virtually nothing to equalize the distribution of wealth. For these reasons, it should be abolished.

Apr 26, 1999

BG #149 – Reforming the U.S. Health Care System

Unwise government policies are largely responsible for the fact that the number of Americans without health insurance is 43 million and rising.  Unwise government policies also are responsible for the fact that people who have health insurance are turning over an ever-larger share of their health care dollars to managed care bureaucracies that limit patient choices and sometimes give providers perverse incentives to deny care.

Aug 17, 1998

BG #148 – Does Punishment Deter?

What explains the sudden decline in crime after a long rise? Better economic conditions? Cultural changes? A more convincing explanation is at hand: Courts have been handing out tougher punishment for crime, and potential criminals know and fear it.

Mar 12, 1998

BG #147 – Technology and Economic Growth in the Information Age

The next quarter century of capitalism promises a silent boom - a rapid economic advance that will improve everyday life but elude the regular readings of the economy's vital signs. Statistical tools simply can't keep up with an economy moving at light speed.

Feb 25, 1998

BG #146 – The Economy's Good News: The Upside of Downsizing

Job losses are less harmful than they are often thought to be. To the contrary, the upside of downsizing lies in a reinvigorated economy. Indeed, the layoffs of the early 1990s can teach important lessons about how the economy operates to turn the bad news of lost jobs into the good news of higher living standards.

Feb 09, 1998

BG #145 – The Marriage Penalty

A marriage penalty results when a married couple pay more taxes by filing jointly than they would pay if each spouse could file as a single person. A couple face the marriage penalty only when both spouses have earned income.

Feb 04, 1998

BG #144 – The 1997 Budget Deal - What It Means to Taxpayers

The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 is important more as a political statement than for its economic impact. As the first major tax cut since 1981, it marks the end of the paralysis in fiscal policy that resulted from the rise of large and persistent budget deficits in the 1980s.

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