The opponents of financial transactions taxes (FTTs) have argued that the imposition of such taxes will slow economic growth by raising the cost of capital. The argument is that if the cost of buying and selling stock and other financial assets is higher, then it makes it more expensive for...

This joint report by CEPR and the Political Economy Research Institute (University of Massachusetts, Amherst) gives an estimate of $177-354 billion in revenue that could be raised by taxing financial transactions in the United States.

The recent economic turmoil has generated renewed interest in a financial transactions tax (FTT). While such a tax will be vigorously opposed by the financial industry, it offers a very attractive mechanism for raising revenue that is arguably efficiency-enhancing. Calculations based on 2000...

Although the national debate on financial transactions taxes has just begun, there have been a wide range of responses arguing that the tax is either undesirable or unenforceable, or both. This paper presents a brief response to these criticisms.

While a number of commissions and organizations around Washington have produced plans for reducing the projected deficit in the decades ahead, most have not included a financial speculation tax (FST) in the mix. This seems peculiar since an FST has several features that could make it attractive...

This working paper argues that pension funds should adopt a funding principle that is consistent with a return on holdings conditional on the state of the stock market. As will be shown, the expected “conditional rate of return” used in making this assessment will vary depending on the...

The OECD recently published a lengthy volume examining the causes of rising inequality in most wealthy countries over the last three decades. This paper examines that study, finding that the OECD misses most of the story of inequality because its primary focus is the ratio of the annual wage of...

This paper identifies a number of questions that need to be answered if the growing interest in building investment portfolios of firms that follow socially and environmentally sustainable practices is to be successful in transforming the financial institutions and analysts from a liability to...

This study produces calculations of the amount of money being dispersed by the government to the 16 primary dealers and investment banks who qualify to borrow through the special lending facilities created in the last year by the Federal Reserve Board under the assumption that each borrows in...

This paper calculates savings from renting compared with owning a house purchased at the peak housing bubble years of 2006 or 2007 in 16 major metropolitan areas. (The appendix includes calculations for 100 cities, including these 16.) The analysis calculates the savings both before- and...