The U.S. economy faces enormous questions and challenges as it attempts to recover from the col-lapse of 2008-09. Some of the most pressing questions are a series of longer-term, structural chal-lenges: Can we establish a growth engine driven by something other than financial bubbles? Can we...

This paper examines the viability of security transaction excise taxes (STETs) as one policy tool for promoting a more stable financial environment, specifically with respect to the U.S. economy. Contrary to a large recent critical literature, we show that a STET can be designed without creating...

Based on a survey of the literature, assesses the strength of the evidence regarding the effects of labour market institutions and regulations on unemployment. Considers the effects of employment protection, trade union density, bargaining coordination, unemployment benefits, the labour tax...

This paper examines the evidence on the impact of stimulus and fiscal consolidation in the context of a severe economic slump like the Great Recession. The first part reviews some of the major works on this topic in the last decade. It notes that the research clearly points in the direction of...

This paper examines the evidence on the impact of stimulus and fiscal consolidation in the context of a severe economic slump like the Great Recession. The first part reviews some of the major works on this topic in the last decade. It notes that the research clearly points in the direction of...

Real wages in the United States have continued to stagnate in the years since the end of the Great Recession. This paper attributes this stagnation directly to the prolonged period of high unemployment. It notes research showing that the only period of sustained wage growth for most of the...

This paper explores the potential impact of the Federal Reserve Board’s decision on interest rates on the budget deficit. The first part recounts the history of the 1990s surplus, correcting the widely held misunderstanding that this surplus was achieved by the Clinton administration’s tax...

Patent monopolies have long been used as a mechanism for financing innovation and research. The logic is that the government awards a monopoly on a product or process for a limited period of time in order to reward innovation. However, in addition to providing incentives for innovation and...

The economy certainly boomed in the late 1990s. But much of the expansion was based on computers and software that either wear out or become obsolete much more quickly than did traditional capital investment in the past. The rise in a nation's standard of living, however, depends on spending...

America is probably facing a slowdown in the rate of natural population increase and possibly a slowdown in productivity growth. We argue that, if these two factors depress the rate of future economic growth, one cannot assume that the past performance of asset returns is indicative of future...