We analyze the German ecotax package in a model of overlapping generations and majority voting. The package consists of the ecotax rate and the budgetary rule which assigns a fraction of the tax revenue to the reduction of pension contributions while holding pension benefits constant. The old...

This articles explores the history of federal SSI/SSDI benefits for those disabled by addictions, the competing definitions of addiction itself, and the policy rationales for repeated changes in the rules. I argue, as a policy matter, that addicts should be allowed to receive SSI/SSDI disability...

In this paper I analyse a labour market where the wage is endogenously determined according to an Efficient Bargaining process between a firm and a labour union whose members are partitioned into two social groups: the old and the young. Furthermore, I exploit the Single-Mindedness theory, which...

In this paper I will introduce a new political economy model, where there exists a competition amongst two political candidates, which aim to set a policy which enables them to win elections, max- imising the probability of winning. I will show that, if taxes neces- sary to repay the debt are...

Although demographic change leaves pay-as-you-go pension systems unsustainable, reforms, such as a higher pension age, are highly unpopular. This contribution looks into the role of intrinsic motivation as a driver for pension reform acceptance. Theoretical reasoning suggests that this driver...

Mehr als 25 Jahre nach der Deutschen Einheit werden die Renten in Ost- und Westdeutschland noch immer auf Basis unterschiedlicher rentenrechtlicher Größen berechnet. Dies führt zu verschiedenen Ungleichbehandlungen und wird zunehmend als unangemessen angesehen. Alle Vorschläge zur...

In this paper, I quantify the role of media in the formation of support for unemployment insurance. Theory suggests that individuals who feel threatened by globalization demand compensatory policies. Using a novel method of quantitative text analysis, I derive measures on the stance to...

Publicly provided health care implies considerable intergenerational redistribution. The possibility of accumulating a fund or debt will affect the degree of redistribution as well as how efficient the financing of health care is. In a voting model we study how governments inability to make...

Rural workers in Brazil can access old-age pensions five years earlier than urban workers. The objective of this study is to evaluate whether unifying the ages of eligibility among these groups (a measure proposed in the last failed pension reform) makes sense from a comparative perspective, and...

In der aktuellen Wahlperiode wird diskutiert, einen Fonds für Härtefälle aus der Rentenüberleitung einzurichten. Damit soll die Deutsche Einheit in der Rentenfrage vollendet werden. Dabei stellt sich die Frage, ob Ungerechtigkeiten aus der Rentenüberleitung entstanden sind. Entgegen der in...