This report analyzes recent proposals suggesting that the government buy up or guarantee bad mortgage debt in an attempt to slow the increasing number of foreclosures the nation has seen in the wake of the housing market's meltdown. The study, which focuses on the plan put forth by the Office of...

This report examines the inefficiency and waste associated with patents and copyrights and explores alternative mechanisms for supporting software development.

This report shows that pharmaceutical companies are making billions in excess profits under the new Medicare drug benefit.

This report uses data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey from 2004 to 2006 as well as data from the Congressional Budget Office to analyze the savings in prescription drug spending for seniors as a result of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and...

This report states that bringing about the rapid adjustment of house prices to trend levels is the best means of returning stability to the housing market. The paper also calls for the restriction of GSE capital in bubble-inflated markets, with the intent of forcing house prices in these areas...

It has been two years since the housing bubble began to deflate. In this time, home prices in major metropolitan areas have fallen more than 32.3 percent and the woes in the housing sector have spread to the broader economy. Where is the housing market today? Have we hit bottom? This paper,...

This report updates CEPR's May 2008 report titled "Ownership, Rental Costs and the Prospects of Building Home Equity: An Analysis of 100 Metropolitan Areas," which compared the ownership and rental costs in 100 major U.S. metropolitan areas and projected the potential for a first-time homebuyer...

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...

The new economic projections from the Congressional Budget Office show the economy remaining well below its potential level of output until 2014. The projections show the unemployment rate averaging 10.2 percent in 2010 and gradually edging down to the long-term sustainable rate of 4.8 percent...

This report gives a background to the debate on privatizing Social Security. It debunks the myth that a crisis is looming, and explains that with no changes whatsoever, benefits can continue well into the future.