Although the vast majority of economists view a carbon tax as an efficient mechanism to reduce gr... more Although the vast majority of economists view a carbon tax as an efficient mechanism to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the policy does not enjoy widespread public support. One reason for this is that economists have failed to adequately address the policy’s effect on household budgets. This paper models the distributional impacts of placing a $49 tax per ton on carbon in the United States. We combine carbon emissions data from the Energy Information Agency with the Input-Output tables from the Bureau of Economic Analysis to calculate the carbon intensity of each industry and commodity. We then analyze data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey to estimate how households would be affected by placing a price on carbon. A carbon tax would disproportionately burden low-income households, and using the carbon tax revenue to reduce taxes on labor leaves 59 percent of people worse off, including 75 percent of those in the bottom half of the income distribution. On the other hand, equal per capita dividends protect the purchasing power of 61 percent of all individuals, including 89 percent of those in the bottom half of the distribution. Many economists have dismissed a tax-and-dividend scheme on efficiency grounds, but we show that potential macroeconomic effects of tax cuts do little to protect the purchasing power of the poor. In an age of increasing inequality, we argue that providing all Americans with equal rebates is the most fair and politically-feasible policy.
The 2007–09 Great Recession and housing crisis erased approximately half of Black and Latino hou... more The 2007–09 Great Recession and housing crisis erased approximately half of Black and Latino households’ wealth, while Asians suffered the largest absolute lost in wealth (McKernan et al. 2014). Asian and Lation households tended to live in geographic areas that were hit hardest by the housing crisis (De La Cruz-Viesca, Hamilton, and Darity 2015). But the dramatic wealth disparities between White communities and communities of color long predate the dramatic economic downturn. This report explores racial and ethnic differences in net worth, focusing on Black families in Washington, DC, and shows, through a chronicle of their history in the city, how discrimination and systemic racism have contributed to today’s wealth gap in the nation’s capital.
In the United States there is a tremendous amount of interest in Community Supported Agriculture ... more In the United States there is a tremendous amount of interest in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) among farmers, consumers, activists, and policymakers. Despite the attention garnered by CSA farms and the resurgence of local agriculture, relatively few studies have examined the livelihood opportunities for farmers within local agriculture. This paper takes a step in this direction, evaluating livelihoods for CSA farmers through in-depth interviews conducted in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts. Based on the principles early advocates set forth as goals of the CSA movement, the paper evaluates how CSA farmers are doing from the farmers’ perspective. The paper finds that while CSA farmers are faring better than other farms across the United States and in the study region in terms of earned farm income, they still earn far less than the median national income of all households. Despite these income challenges, CSA provides broader social, ecological, and economic benefits to farming communities as a whole, with its focus on providing food for the community rather than producing mass commodities for the market. These non-market benefits are a significant source of well-being from the CSA farmers’ perspective.
Although the vast majority of economists view a carbon tax as an efficient mechanism to reduce gr... more Although the vast majority of economists view a carbon tax as an efficient mechanism to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the policy does not enjoy widespread public support. One reason for this is that economists have failed to adequately address the policy’s effect on household budgets. This paper models the distributional impacts of placing a $49 tax per ton on carbon in the United States. We combine carbon emissions data from the Energy Information Agency with the Input-Output tables from the Bureau of Economic Analysis to calculate the carbon intensity of each industry and commodity. We then analyze data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey to estimate how households would be affected by placing a price on carbon. A carbon tax would disproportionately burden low-income households, and using the carbon tax revenue to reduce taxes on labor leaves 59 percent of people worse off, including 75 percent of those in the bottom half of the income distribution. On the other hand, equal per capita dividends protect the purchasing power of 61 percent of all individuals, including 89 percent of those in the bottom half of the distribution. Many economists have dismissed a tax-and-dividend scheme on efficiency grounds, but we show that potential macroeconomic effects of tax cuts do little to protect the purchasing power of the poor. In an age of increasing inequality, we argue that providing all Americans with equal rebates is the most fair and politically-feasible policy.
The 2007–09 Great Recession and housing crisis erased approximately half of Black and Latino hou... more The 2007–09 Great Recession and housing crisis erased approximately half of Black and Latino households’ wealth, while Asians suffered the largest absolute lost in wealth (McKernan et al. 2014). Asian and Lation households tended to live in geographic areas that were hit hardest by the housing crisis (De La Cruz-Viesca, Hamilton, and Darity 2015). But the dramatic wealth disparities between White communities and communities of color long predate the dramatic economic downturn. This report explores racial and ethnic differences in net worth, focusing on Black families in Washington, DC, and shows, through a chronicle of their history in the city, how discrimination and systemic racism have contributed to today’s wealth gap in the nation’s capital.
In the United States there is a tremendous amount of interest in Community Supported Agriculture ... more In the United States there is a tremendous amount of interest in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) among farmers, consumers, activists, and policymakers. Despite the attention garnered by CSA farms and the resurgence of local agriculture, relatively few studies have examined the livelihood opportunities for farmers within local agriculture. This paper takes a step in this direction, evaluating livelihoods for CSA farmers through in-depth interviews conducted in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts. Based on the principles early advocates set forth as goals of the CSA movement, the paper evaluates how CSA farmers are doing from the farmers’ perspective. The paper finds that while CSA farmers are faring better than other farms across the United States and in the study region in terms of earned farm income, they still earn far less than the median national income of all households. Despite these income challenges, CSA provides broader social, ecological, and economic benefits to farming communities as a whole, with its focus on providing food for the community rather than producing mass commodities for the market. These non-market benefits are a significant source of well-being from the CSA farmers’ perspective.
Uploads