This paper compares measures of 2010 annual income from the Current Population Survey (CPS) with those derived from IRS Statistics of Income Division (SOI) administrative tax data and finds that the CPS vastly understates the income of the elderly. We focus on four types of income found to be...

This paper documents our method of building a representative sample of the US population from tax data, the first step in larger research project measuring changes in the amount and composition of income over the life cycle. We supplement tax return data—which allows us to identify filers and...

This study uses administrative tax data to build a unique panel dataset that follows the 1945 birth-year cohort from 2000 (when aged 55) through 2017 (when aged 72). These data allow us to observe changes in the amount and composition of individuals’ income from before they are eligible to...

Deteriorating financial market conditions in 2008 intensified the debate over the ability of 401(k) plans to provide retirement income. This paper simulates the effects of the market crash of 2008 for 401(k) plan participants of various ages, earnings levels, and portfolios. Because Social...