Unemployment Archive
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Off the Charts Blog: In Case You Missed It...
May 17, 2013
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Policy Basics: How Many Weeks of Unemployment Compensation Are Available?
Updated May 13, 2013
The unemployment insurance (UI) system helps many people who have lost their jobs by temporarily replacing part of their wages. (See “Introduction to Unemployment Insurance.”) The total number of weeks of benefits available in any particular state depends on the unemployment rate and unemployment insurance laws in the state where the person … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the April Employment Report
May 3, 2013
Today’s jobs report shows that labor markets still bear the scars of the Great Recession despite 38 straight months of private-sector job growth and a drop in the unemployment rate from 7.9 percent to 7.5 percent since January. Unemployment remains stubbornly high and many people who would likely have a … -
Chart Book: The Legacy of the Great Recession
Updated May 3, 2013
The United States went through its longest, and by most measures worst economic recession since the Great Depression between December 2007 and June 2009. This chartbook will document the course of the economy following that recession against the background of how deep a hole the recession created … -
Policy Basics: Federal Payroll Taxes
Updated April 15, 2013
The federal government levies payroll taxes primarily on wages and self-employment income and uses most of the revenue to fund Social Security, Medicare, and other social insurance benefits. Federal payroll taxes generated $845 billion in 2012, or 35 percent of all federal revenues (see “Policy Basics: Where Do Federal Tax Revenues Come From?”). … -
President Obama’s Deficit-Reduction Package and Other Proposals in the 2014 Budget
April 11, 2013
The President’s 2014 budget is presented in two parts. One part includes the package of deficit- reduction policies that the President included in his last offer to Speaker Boehner during the “fiscal cliff” negotiations in December 2012. This package would reduce the deficit by $1.8 trillion over the next decade … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the March Employment Report
April 5, 2013
Today’s jobs report, with disappointing job growth and a large drop in the labor force, shows that a robust jobs recovery remains elusive. That situation won’t likely improve in coming months as the sequestration budget cuts begin to slow the economic recovery and make it harder … -
Testimony of Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on Unintended Consequences: Is Government Effectively Addressing the Unemployment Crisis?
February 14, 2013
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify on this important topic. The first half of my testimony focuses on the macroeconomic roots of our current jobs crisis and the second part focuses specifically on unemployment insurance. There is no doubt that the United States continues to suffer a … -
Testimony of Robert Greenstein, President, Before Senate Budget Committee
February 13, 2013
I appreciate the invitation to testify today on the impact of federal budget decisions on families and communities. This is an important matter. As you know, the nation will have to make tough decisions to put the budget on a more sustainable fiscal course. The issue is not only whether policymakers act to secure adequate … -
Introduction to Unemployment Insurance
Updated February 6, 2013
The federal-state unemployment insurance system (UI) helps many people who have lost their jobs by temporarily replacing part of their wages while they look for work. Created in 1935, it is a form of social insurance, with contributions being paid into the system on behalf of working people so that they have income support if they lose … -
Testimony of Jared Bernstein, Senior Fellow, Before the House Education and Workforce Committee
February 5, 2013
Chairman Kline and ranking member Miller, I thank you for inviting me to testify today on issues directly in the wheelhouse of this committee: education, skills, and jobs. My testimony begins by looking at the current jobs situation with an emphasis on educational investments. I then discuss ways in which recent budget cuts are threatening the … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the January Employment Report
February 1, 2013
Employers continued to add jobs in January (see chart), but the economy must grow faster to bring unemployment down more quickly. Instead, the recovery apparently has hit a soft patch, and both growth and job creation could slow further if policymakers let the automatic across-the-board … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the December Employment Report
January 4, 2013
The economy added private sector jobs for the 34th straight month in December, but a robust recovery remains elusive, long-term unemployment remains very high (see chart), and threats to the economy from misguided policies in Washington remain significant. Policymakers appropriately renewed … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the November Employment Report
December 7, 2012
Beyond the surprising news that Hurricane Sandy had little effect on overall job creation and unemployment, today’s report paints a familiar picture of moderate job creation and stubbornly high unemployment (see chart). Though unemployment fell, that’s because the labor force … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the October Employment Report
November 2, 2012
As today’s jobs report shows, the economy continues to create jobs but not fast enough to erase the huge job losses from the Great Recession (see chart). The unemployment rate has dropped more than two points from its peak, but it remains too high for policymakers to let emergency … -
A Guide to Statistics on Historical Trends in Income Inequality
Revised October 23, 2012
The broad facts of income inequality over the past six decades are easily summarized: The years from the end of World War II into the 1970s were ones of substantial economic growth and broadly shared prosperity. Incomes grew rapidly and at roughly the same rate up and down the income ladder, roughly doubling … -
Payroll Tax Cut and Emergency Unemployment Insurance Still Needed to Support the Recovery
October 16, 2012
Among the various tax and spending measures scheduled to expire at the end of this year, the temporary payroll tax cut enacted in 2010 and emergency federal unemployment insurance (UI) are among the most cost-effective at supporting the economic recovery without endangering efforts to control long-term deficits and debt. Given the state … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the September Employment Report
October 5, 2012
Today’s jobs report sent mixed signals about the overall job market but left no doubt that long-term unemployment remains a significant problem — making clear that policymakers must not let emergency federal unemployment insurance (UI) expire at the end of the year. Two-fifths of the … -
Misguided “Fiscal Cliff” Fears Pose Challenges to Productive Budget Negotiations
Updated September 24, 2012
The sooner policymakers enact legislation to put the budget on a sustainable long-term path without threatening the vulnerable economic recovery, the better. But, as they prepare for an almost certain post-election "lame duck" session of Congress, policymakers should not make budget decisions with long-term consequences based … -
2011’s Decline in Uninsured is Largest in 13 Years, but Median Income Fell, Inequality Widened, and Poverty Stayed Flat
September 17, 2012
The Census Bureau last week released a mixed set of data about poverty, income, and health insurance coverage in 2011.[1] On the positive side, the number of Americans without health insurance dropped by 1.3 million and the share of uninsured Americans fell by more than in any year since 1999. Young adults took advantage of a … -
Statement of Robert Greenstein, President, on Census’ 2011 Poverty, Income, and Health Insurance Data
September 12, 2012
Today’s Census data contained the good, the fair, and the ugly. The good news is that the number of uninsured Americans dropped by 1.3 million and the share of Americans without insurance fell by more than in any year since 1999; the fair news is that the poverty rate stayed flat after … -
Media Briefing: Examining the 2011 Census Data on Poverty, Health Insurance Coverage, and Income
September 12, 2012
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities held a conference call briefing to examine the Census Bureau data for 2011 on poverty, health insurance coverage, and income trends.
Robert Greenstein, the Center’s President, was joined by Jared Bernstein, Senior Fellow, to discuss the new data.
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What to Look for in Wednesday’s Poverty Data — And What the Official Data Won’t Tell Us
September 10, 2012
On September 12, the Census Bureau will release official poverty figures for 2011, as well as additional data related to the impact of various safety net programs in keeping people out of poverty last year. What to Look For: Poverty could rise again; if it does, it will have risen significantly in 8 of the last 11 years. Such an … -
Declines in Unemployment Benefits and Government Employment Shaped Poverty Trends in 2011, Preliminary Data Suggest
September 7, 2012
The Census Bureau will release official 2011 poverty figures on September 12. If the figures show that poverty rose, as some analysts predict, two key factors will almost certainly be a reduction in unemployment insurance benefits in 2011 and a decline in public-sector jobs, particularly among state and local government workers. In … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the August Employment Report
September 7, 2012
Today’s disappointing jobs report shows that despite 30 straight months of private-sector job creation — including 103,000 new private-sector jobs in August — unemployment will likely remain high for the foreseeable future, suggesting policymakers should extend federal … -
House Agriculture Committee Farm Bill Would Throw 2 to 3 Million People Off of SNAP
Updated September 5, 2012
On July 12th the House Agriculture Committee passed its 2012 farm bill, H.R. 6083, the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2012 (FARRM.) [1] The bill would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program) by $16.5 billion over the next decade, eliminating food … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the July Employment Report
August 3, 2012
Today’s jobs report showing some pickup in job creation does not reduce the need for policymakers to implement measures to give the flagging recovery a needed boost, including preparing to extend emergency federal unemployment insurance (UI) past its scheduled expiration at the end of the … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the June Employment Report
July 6, 2012
The weak June employment report shows that it remains difficult to find a job in today’s job market, especially for the long-term unemployed (those who have been looking for work for 27 weeks or longer). The percentage of people in the labor force who are long-term unemployed remains … -
Policy Basics: Unemployment Insurance
Updated June 25, 2012
The federal-state unemployment insurance (UI) system helps people who have lost their jobs and are eligible for benefits by temporarily replacing part of their wages. Created in 1935, it is a form of social insurance, with contributions being paid into the system on behalf of working people so that … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the May Employment Report
June 1, 2012
Today’s disappointing employment report shows that the labor market remains far below full strength. The unemployment rate edged up to 8.2 percent and forecasters expect it to remain near 8 percent by the end of the year, which has important implications for the current temporary … -
Video: Jared Bernstein and Hannah Shaw Discuss the May Employment Report
June 1, 2012
Jared Bernstein, the Center’s Senior Fellow, and Hannah Shaw, one of the Center’s Research Associates, discuss the policy implications of the disappointing jobs report for May.
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New CBO Report Finds Hundreds of Thousands of People Still Owe Their Jobs to the Recovery Act
Updated May 29, 2012
A new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report estimates that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) increased the number of people employed by between 200,000 and 1.5 million jobs in March.[1] In other words, between 200,000 and 1.5 million people employed in March owed their jobs to the Recovery Act. This estimate, … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the April Employment Report
May 4, 2012
Today’s employment report shows that April’s job growth was disappointing for the second straight month and that the economic costs in terms of fewer jobs, less income, and lower growth remain very high. In particular, the number of workers in the Labor Department’s … -
Video: Chad Stone and Hannah Shaw Discuss the March Employment Report
April 6, 2012
Chad Stone, Chief Economist, and Hannah Shaw, Research Associate, discuss the disappointing jobs report for March and what it indicates about job creation and economic growth. Click the video for the full discussion. -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the March Employment Report
April 6, 2012
Today's jobs report disappointed expectations, with employers adding only 120,000 jobs in March, making clear that a strong jobs recovery remains elusive. The unemployment rate dipped to 8.2 percent, but that decline reflected people leaving the labor force, not finding jobs. The … -
Blog Post: Greenstein on the Ryan Budget
March 21, 2012
We’ve issued a statement from Robert Greenstein on the budget from House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan. Here’s the opening: The new Ryan budget is a remarkable document — one that, for most of the past half-century, would have been outside the bounds of mainstream discussion due to its extreme nature. In essence, this budget is … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the February Employment Report
March 9, 2012
Today brought another solid monthly employment report. Nevertheless, the economic recovery still has a long way to go to erase the lingering effects of the Great Recession and restore full employment and a healthy labor market. Moreover, economic forecasters expect only modest economic growth … -
New CBO Report Finds Up to Two Million People Still Owe Their Jobs to the Recovery Act
Updated February 24, 2012
View the most recent version of this report: New CBO Report Finds Hundreds of Thousands of People Still Owe Their Jobs to the Recovery Act Updated May 29, 2012 A new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report estimates that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) increased the number of people employed by between 300,000 and 2 million jobs … -
Conference Agreement Far Better For Unemployed Workers and UI System Than Original House Bill
February 17, 2012
The conference agreement on legislation that continues federal emergency unemployment insurance (UI) gives unemployed workers a far better deal than UI legislation that the House passed last December. It also rejects extreme proposals in the House bill that would have changed the essential character of the UI system, which policymakers created … -
Contrary to "Entitlement Society" Rhetoric, Over Nine-Tenths of Entitlement Benefits Go to Elderly, Disabled, or Working Households
February 10, 2012
Some conservative critics of federal social programs, including leading presidential candidates, are sounding an alarm that the United States is rapidly becoming an “entitlement society” in which social programs are undermining the work ethic and creating a large class of Americans who prefer to depend on government benefits rather … -
Testimony of Jared Bernstein Before the Senate Budget Committee on Assessing Inequality, Mobility, and Opportunity
February 9, 2012
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Video: Jared Bernstein Discusses the January Employment Report with Chad Stone
February 3, 2012
Jared Bernstein, Senior Fellow, and Chad Stone, Chief Economist, discuss what the encouraging January employment report indicates about job creation and economic growth.
Chad Stone: “We’re smiling and the markets are smiling and this is actually a good jobs report. It’s one of the few good jobs reports we’ve had in this recovery. We had 240,000 jobs on private and government payrolls combined. 257,000 jobs in the private sector. 23 straight months of private sector job creation. Another two years of that, we’ll have erased the hole that got created by the Great Recession.”
Duration: 4:32
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Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the January Employment Report
February 3, 2012
Today's jobs report is encouraging, but we should judge it against the overall sluggishness of the economic recovery and a persistently large jobs deficit that remains after 23 straight months of private-sector job creation. Payroll employment is still 5.6 million jobs short of where … -
Testimony of Jared Bernstein Before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce
February 1, 2012
Chairman Kline, Ranking Member Miller, and members of the Committee, I thank you for the opportunity to testify today and applaud you for holding this hearing on the issue that matters most to most Americans right now: opportunity, jobs, and the living standards of the broad middle class. Introduction: Current Conditions and the American Middle … -
Video: "You Ask, I Answer" with Jared Bernstein
January 31, 2012
Jared Bernstein, Senior Fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, answers questions from his readers.
Duration: 6:15
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House Republican Proposal Would Undermine Foundation of Unemployment Insurance System
January 17, 2012
A provision that some policymakers may seek to include in legislation to extend the payroll tax cut through the end of 2012 would authorize the Secretary of Labor to let up to ten states per year use unemployment insurance (UI) funds for purposes other than paying benefits. The provision, part of the full-year payroll-tax bill … -
Hundreds of Thousands of Lower-Wage Workers, Many of Whom Worked for Decades, Would Be Denied Unemployment Insurance Under Provision Now Under Consideration
January 6, 2012
A provision that congressional negotiators will consider for legislation to extend the payroll tax cut through the end of 2012 would deny unemployment insurance (UI) to hundreds of thousands of lower-wage workers who worked for years or even decades, effectively paid UI taxes while they worked, and then were laid off. The provision, part … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the December Employment Report
January 6, 2012
Today’s employment report shows glimmers of hope for the job market, most notably the addition of 200,000 payroll jobs in December. Yet a strong jobs recovery remains elusive. The overall jobs deficit remains large, the labor force shrank for the second straight month, and the proportion … -
Congressional Impasse Jeopardizes January Jobless Benefits for Nearly Two Million Workers
December 22, 2011
Congress's failure to resolve differences over how to pay for renewing the payroll tax cut and federal emergency unemployment insurance (UI) benefits could mean an even colder January for jobless workers. States are already taking action to shut down the provision of federal benefits at the start of the new year, putting 1.8 … -
Key Things to Know About Unemployment Insurance
Updated December 20, 2011
In the heat of the battle over how to address the imminent expiration of federal emergency unemployment insurance (UI) benefits (and the payroll tax cut), policymakers should not lose sight of what UI is and how it has functioned over the years. UI not only cushions the financial blow for workers who lose their jobs through no fault of their … -
House Unemployment Insurance Proposal Would Harm Jobless Workers, Weaken Economy, and Undermine UI System
December 14, 2011
The House Republican bill (H.R. 3630) to extend the payroll tax cut and federal emergency unemployment insurance (UI) through next year would sharply curtail the number of weeks of UI benefits available to the long-term unemployed, even though jobs remain scarce and long-term unemployment remains at unprecedented levels. In addition, it would … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the November Employment Report
December 2, 2011
Today's employment report shows continued moderate growth in private payroll employment but a further decline in government jobs. Thus, the overall jobs deficit remains large (see chart) and jobs remain hard to find. The drop in the unemployment rate to 8.6 percent arises from people … -
New CBO Report Finds Up to 2.4 Million People Owe Their Jobs to the Recovery Act
Updated November 23, 2011
View the most recent version of this report: New CBO Report Finds Hundreds of Thousands of People Still Owe Their Jobs to the Recovery Act Updated May 29, 2012 A new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report estimates that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) increased the number of people employed by between 0.4 million and 2.4 million jobs … -
Testimony: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, at Hearing on “Could Tax Reform Boost Business Investment and Job Creation”
November 17, 2011
Chairman Casey, Vice Chairman Brady, and other members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify before this committee, which has been special to me since I first worked on the JEC staff in 1989. In my testimony, I want to make one overarching point about the question raised by the title of this hearing, … -
Balanced Budget Amendment Highly Ill-Advised for Addressing Long-Term Fiscal Problems
November 14, 2011
The balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution that the House will consider this week would be a highly ill-advised way to address the nation's long-term fiscal problems. It would threaten significant economic harm while raising a host of problems for the operation of Social Security and other vital federal functions. The … -
The Composition of Past Deficit-Reduction Packages – And Lessons for the Next One
November 14, 2011
Revenue increases were a part of every major deficit-reduction package in the 1980s and 1990s until the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. In several cases — notably in 1982 and 1984 (where they offset a portion of President Reagan's large tax cuts of 1981) — they dominated the package. In several other cases … -
Poverty and Financial Distress Would Have Been Substantially Worse in 2010 Without Government Action, New Census Data Show
November 7, 2011
Six temporary federal initiatives enacted in 2009 and 2010 to bolster the economy by lifting consumers’ incomes and purchases kept nearly 7 million Americans out of poverty in 2010, under an alternative measure of poverty that takes into account the impact of government benefit programs and taxes. These initiatives — three … -
Video: A Discussion with Jared Bernstein and Chad Stone on the October Employment Report
November 5, 2011
Long-term unemployment is, in this recession, and aftermath, has been at unprecedented levels. In the really bad recession in the 1980s we didn’t see anywhere near as much long-term unemployment.
Duration: 4:34
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Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the October Employment Report
November 4, 2011
Today's employment report shows that jobs remain scarce, especially for the long-term unemployed. More than two-fifths of the unemployed have been looking for a job for more than six months (see chart) — and, according to a recent Pew Economic Policy Group Report, nearly a third of the … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the September Employment Report
October 7, 2011
Today's jobs report shows that more than two years after the recession officially ended, a strong jobs recovery remains elusive. With job creation still sluggish, unemployment still very high, and the share of Americans with a job still severely depressed (see chart), policymakers should enact a … -
Many States Cutting TANF Benefits Harshly Despite High Unemployment and Unprecedented Need
Updated October 3, 2011
In 2011, states implemented some of the harshest cuts in recent history for many of the nation's most vulnerable families with children who are receiving assistance through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant. The cuts affect 700,000 low-income families that include 1.3 million children; these families … -
Poverty Rate Second-Highest in 45 Years; Record Numbers Lacked Health Insurance, Lived in Deep Poverty
September 14, 2011
Driven by the persistent weakness in the economy, the poverty rate in 2010 reached its second-highest point since 1965, median income declined, and the number and percentage of Americans without health insurance stood at record highs, the Census Bureau said yesterday. The share of Americans in "deep poverty" — with incomes … -
Statement: Robert Greenstein, President, on Census’ 2010 Poverty, Income, and Health Insurance Data
September 13, 2011
Today's Census report shows that in 2010, the share of all Americans and the share of children living in poverty, the number and share of people living in "deep poverty," and the number without health insurance all reached their highest level in many years — in some cases, in … -
Media Briefing: Examining the New 2010 Census Data on Poverty, Health Insurance Coverage, and Income
September 13, 2011
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities held a conference call briefing for journalists Tuesday, September 13, at 1:30 p.m. (ET) to examine the new Census Bureau data for 2010 on poverty, health insurance coverage, and income trends that will be released that morning.
Duration: 21:12
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The Census Bureau’s Upcoming Report on Health Insurance
September 9, 2011
On September 13, the Census Bureau will release estimates of the number and percentage of Americans with, and without, health insurance coverage in 2010. Historical trends and other survey data suggest that: The number and share of Americans without health coverage are likely to … -
Making Sense of Next Week’s Poverty Data
September 9, 2011
Here are five points to keep in mind regarding the official poverty figures for 2010, which the Census Bureau will release on September 13: Poverty may well increase. Key bellwethers of poverty, such as long-term unemployment, worsened from 2009 to 2010, so the poverty rate may worsen as … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the August Employment Report
September 2, 2011
Today's jobs report highlights the critical need for policies to put people back to work. Employers added no net new jobs and the unemployment rate remained 9.1 percent. Most leading forecasters in government and out expect the unemployment rate to remain very high for the next few … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the July Employment Report
August 5, 2011
Today's jobs report shows that the labor market continues to limp along rather than put people back to work. The share of the population with a job remains severely depressed and unemployment remains alarmingly high — with more than 40 percent of the unemployment rate … -
National Organizations Opposing the Balanced Budget Amendment
Updated July 14, 2011
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Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the June Employment Report
July 8, 2011
Today’s very disappointing employment report shows that two years after the technical end of the recession and after 16 straight months of private-sector job creation, the jobs deficit remains huge (see chart). The depth of the job losses from the recession is unprecedented since … -
Testimony: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, Before the Joint Economic Committee
June 21, 2011
Vice Chairman Brady and other members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify. I feel especially privileged to be appearing as a witness before the Joint Economic Committee, which together with the President's Council of Economic Advisers — both established by the Employment Act of 1946 — … -
Camp-Hatch Proposal Would Harm Long-Term Unemployed and Weaken Recovery
June 13, 2011
Legislation from House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp and Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Orrin Hatch would rescind the federal government’s commitment to provide unemployment insurance (UI) benefits through 2011 to Americans who have been out of work for more than half a year and are still looking for a job. Their bill … -
House-Passed Proposal to Block-Grant and Cut SNAP (Food Stamps) Rests on False Claims About Program Growth
Revised June 7, 2011
The House-passed plan to convert SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps) to a block grant and cut the program by almost 20 percent rests on the false claim that the program is experiencing “relentless and unsustainable growth.” [1] SNAP’s substantial growth of recent years … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the May Employment Report
June 3, 2011
Today’s employment report should be a wake-up call to policymakers who continue to say the budget deficit is a more immediate threat to the economy than the jobs deficit. Nearly two years after the economy technically turned the corner from recession to recovery, job growth was … -
Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the April Employment Report
May 6, 2011
Today’s employment report provides mixed signals on the jobs market. The survey of employers shows they added jobs at a solid pace in April. Yet the jobs deficit from the recession remains very large and, even more discouraging, the survey of households shows that unemployment is still high, with too many people … -
Testimony: Paul Van de Water, Senior Fellow, on Budget Enforcement Mechanisms
May 4, 2011
Mr. Chairman, Senator Hatch, and members of the committee, I appreciate the invitation to appear before you today. The federal budget is on an unsustainable path. If we continue current policies — including a further extension of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts and AMT relief — deficits will remain high throughout the … -
Chairman Ryan’s Baseless Attack on SNAP/Food Stamps
April 8, 2011
Falsely claiming that the nation’s most important anti-hunger program — SNAP, formerly called food stamps — is experiencing “relentless and unsustainable growth,” House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan calls for converting it into a block grant. The truth is that SNAP’s recent growth is temporary and reflects the battered … -
Ryan Plan’s “Path to Prosperity” Is Just for the Wealthy
April 6, 2011
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s name for his budget — “The Path to Prosperity” — is a cruel joke. One of this nation’s core beliefs is that if you work hard and act responsibly, you can get ahead, raise a family, and have a decent life. That was never more true than in the three decades after World War II, when the path to … -
Republican Study Committee Bill Would Require Deepest Cuts in Programs for the Poor in U.S. History
April 5, 2011
Legislation unveiled last month by the Republican Study Committee, the powerful caucus that includes 176 House Republican members, would require the most severe cuts in programs for the poor in the nation’s history. Introduced by RSC Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH), Tim Scott (R-SC), and RSC Budget and Spending Task Force Chair … -
Heritage’s Rosy View of Ryan Budget
April 5, 2011
Ryan Avent beat me to the punch in calling out the Heritage Foundation’s analysis of how House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s budget would affect the economy. I’m with Avent: Heritage’s unemployment projection is so bizarre as to call into question the whole exercise. As the chart above shows, Heritage projects that under the Ryan budget, the unemployment rate will be 6.4 percent in 2012 — a full two percentage points below the Congressional Budget Office forecast — and will drop below 3 … -
Ryan’s Cowardly Budget
April 5, 2011
The Center has just issued a statement on House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s budget plan and a brief analysis showing that the plan would get about two-thirds of its more than $4 trillion in budget cuts over 10 years from programs that serve people of limited means. . -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the March Employment Report
April 1, 2011
Today’s employment report shows that the economy is creating jobs at a solid pace. But it also reminds us that without even stronger job growth, it will take years to erase the large jobs deficit that the 2007-2009 recession created (see chart) and to lower the unemployment rate … -
Podcast: The February Unemployment Report and What It Means for the Economy
March 4, 2011
The jobs report for February is discussed by Chief Economist, Chad Stone.
Duration: 2:46
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Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the February Employment Report
March 4, 2011
Today’s employment report shows job creation bouncing back from last month’s depressed level, but it also shows that the labor market is still suffering serious ill-effects from the 2007-2009 recession. Job growth thus far in the economic recovery has reduced only a small part … -
Creating Subsidized Employment Opportunities for Low-Income Parents
February 16, 2011
Issued Jointly With Amidst the worst downturn since the Great Depression, Congress included the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Emergency Fund [1] in the 2009 Recovery Act to help states cover the costs of providing more assistance to low-income families suffering from the ill effects of the … -
Press Release: State Unemployment Insurance Systems Need Major Reforms to Avoid Employer Tax Increases, Deep Benefit Cuts for Jobless Workers
February 9, 2011
Issued Jointly With Many states’ systems for financing unemployment insurance (UI) are broken and, without major reforms, will remain broken, requiring years of high federal taxes on employers and threatening UI’s role as a key economic stabilizer during recessions, according to a major new report … -
Rebuilding the Unemployment Insurance System: A Deficit-Neutral Plan That Limits Tax Increases and Maintains Benefits
February 8, 2011
Issued Jointly With The systems for financing unemployment insurance (UI) in many states are broken and, without major reforms, they will remain broken through this decade and beyond, requiring years of high federal taxes on employers and threatening the system’s role as a key economic stabilizer during … -
Podcast: The January Unemployment Report and What It Means for the Economy
February 4, 2011
The jobs report for January is discussed by Chief Economist, Chad Stone.
Duration: 3:07
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Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the January Employment Report
February 4, 2011
Today’s jobs report is another in the recent string of such monthly reports showing modest job creation. The unemployment rate dropped surprisingly to 9 percent, but it remains very high. While labor market conditions are brighter than two years ago when the economy was … -
Podcast: The Commerce Department’s Report on GDP and What It Means for the Economy and Job Creation
February 1, 2011
Chad Stone, the Center’s Chief Economist, discusses what the Commerce Department’s new report on gross domestic product means for the economy and job creation.
Duration: 3:12
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TANF Responded Unevenly to Increase in Need During Downturn
(with state-by-state fact sheets)
January 25, 2011
Nationally, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, which provides basic assistance to low-income families with little or no income, has only been modestly responsive to the economic downturn. Using data collected directly from the states, [1] we estimate that between December 2007 and December 2009, TANF caseloads increased by just 13 percent, while … -
Podcast: Debunking False Claims About Health Reform's Impact on Jobs and the Deficit
January 18, 2011
Senior Fellow Paul Van de Water discusses myths about health reform’s impact on jobs and the deficit.
Duration: 3:57
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Statement: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the December Employment Report
January 7, 2011
Today’s jobs report shows that after two years of net job losses, payroll employment grew modestly in 2010, with private employers adding jobs every month (see chart). The drop in December’s unemployment rate was welcome, but a key reason for it was people leaving … -
Podcast: The December Unemployment Report and What It Means for the Economy
January 7, 2011
The jobs report for December is discussed by Chief Economist, Chad Stone.
Duration: 3:29
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Despite Deep Recession and High Unemployment, Government Efforts — Including the Recovery Act — Prevented Poverty from Rising in 2009, New Census Data Show
January 5, 2011
Despite a deep recession, very high unemployment, and widespread hardship, a combination of existing safety net programs and temporary expansions in them enacted in 2009 all but prevented a rise in the poverty rate that year, according to a Center analysis of new poverty data the U.S. Census Bureau released this week that … -
Zandi Analyses Show "Democratic" Measures in Tax Cut-UI Deal Boost Economy, "Republican" Measures Add to Deficit Risks
December 22, 2010
As a result of the tax cut-unemployment insurance legislation that President Obama signed into law last week, economic forecasters have substantially upgraded their outlook for 2011 (see the box on page 2). An analysis of the compromise by Mark Zandi, the chief economist for Moody’s Analytics, indicates that this greater optimism stems … -
Podcast: Rising Need, Falling Funding for TANF Program
December 21, 2010
Director of the Center’s Welfare Reform and Income Support Division, Dr. LaDonna Pavetti, talks about cuts to the safety net despite the rising need among our most vulnerable citizens.
Duration: 4:43
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Federal TANF Funding Shrinking While Need Remains High
December 15, 2010
With unemployment high and millions of families in need, for the first time since 1996 when President Clinton and Congress created the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant as part of welfare reform, no additional TANF funds are available from the federal government to help states respond to the large … -
Podcast: The Recovery Act is Boosting the Economy
December 14, 2010
Michael Leachman, Assistant Director of the Center’s State Fiscal Project, discusses the latest information showing that the Recovery Act is creating jobs and boosting the economy.
Duration: 3:53
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Unpacking the Tax Cut-Unemployment Compromise
December 10, 2010
Last night, the Senate released legislative language for the tax cut-unemployment insurance compromise negotiated between President Obama and Congressional Republicans. The Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) released an official cost estimate for the revenue portions of the bill shortly thereafter. These graphs illustrate the various components …
