The Myth of Stagnant Income

This paper by Bruce Sacerdote is worth noting:

Despite the large increase in U.S. income inequality, consumption for families at the 25th and 50th percentiles of income has grown steadily over the time period 1960-2015. The number of cars per household with below median income has doubled since 1980 and the number of bedrooms per household has grown 10 percent despite decreases in household size. The finding of zero growth in American real wages since the 1970s is driven in part by the choice of the CPI-U as the price deflator; small biases in any price deflator compound over long periods of time. Using a different deflator such as the Personal Consumption Expenditures index (PCE) yields modest growth in real wages and in median household incomes throughout the time period. Accounting for the Hamilton (1998) and Costa (2001) estimates of CPI bias yields estimated wage growth of 1 percent per year during 1975-2015. Meaningful growth in consumption for below median income families has occurred even in a prolonged period of increasing income inequality, increasing consumption inequality and a decreasing share of national income accruing to labor. 

How the heck did they choose that name?

If anyone knows why this GPS car tracker has the name it does, please let me know.

Economics Teaching Workship

I will be speaking at the University of Kentucky Economics Teaching Workshop on April 22.  If you are interested in more information, click here.

A Guide to the GOP Tax Plan

Tax policy nerds will enjoy this detailed and thoughtful discussion of the proposed Brady-Ryan tax reforms by University of Chicago law professor David Weisbach.

Econ 101 for Potus 45

Click here to read my column in Sunday's NY Times.

An Odds-On Bet

According to the betting odds over at Ladbrokes, President Trump is more likely to resign or be impeached than he is to serve a full term.

Swagel on Tax Reform

My old friend Phill Swagel has good things to say about the Brady-Ryan tax reform.