Publications
The Hamilton Project produces and commissions policy proposals and analyses to promote broad-based economic growth by embracing a significant role for well-designed government policies and public investment.
Papers
Changes in the safety net over recent decades and their impact
This paper examines the U.S. safety net's evolution, effectiveness, and critiques.
Economic Security & Inequality
Social Insurance
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Papers
A primer on SNAP work requirements
Economic Security & Inequality
Employment & Wages
Social Insurance
Posts
Work permit applications suggest prior immigration is still pushing up labor supply—for now
Employment & Wages
Immigration
Posts
Higher new Census population estimates will affect the employment report
Employment & Wages
Immigration
Explore All Publications
Economic Facts
June 23, 2015
Ten economic facts about financial well-being in retirement
Rising life expectancy and potentially exorbitant long-term care costs have increased the financial resources required to support oneself and one’s spouse in r…
Papers
April 20, 2015
Profiles of change: Employment, earnings, and occupations from 1990–2013
There has been tremendous focus in recent years on the plight of the typical American worker. In this economic analysis, The Hamilton Project takes a careful l…
Policy Proposals
June 16, 2014
Reducing unintended pregnancies for low-income women
In this policy memo, Isabel Sawhill and Joanna Venator propose that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Population Affairs, in conjunct…
Policy Proposals
June 16, 2014
Designing effective mentoring programs for disadvantaged youth
In this policy memo, Phillip B. Levine proposes that nongovernmental organizations—including nonprofits, foundations, and charitable organizations—as well as p…
Policy Proposals
June 16, 2014
Building on the success of the Earned Income Tax Credit
In this policy memo, Hilary Hoynes proposes expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) by raising the benefits for families with one child to be on par with…
Posts
January 10, 2014
The “ripple effect” of a minimum wage increase on American workers
In this month’s Hamilton Project employment analysis, we consider the “ripple effects” of a minimum wage increase on near-minimum wage workers, finding that a …
Economic Facts
December 2, 2013
A dozen facts about America’s struggling lower-middle class
Many American families whose incomes are not low enough to officially place them in poverty live in economically precarious situations. This struggling lower-m…
Policy Proposals
February 26, 2013
An evidence-based path to disability insurance reform
Jeffrey Liebman and Jack Smalligan propose a path to improve our disability insurance system, through demonstration projects and administrative changes, that c…