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.

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Posts March 2, 2020

What should a fiscal response to a COVID-19 outbreak look like?

Hamilton Project Director Jay Shambaugh comments on the COVID-19 virus and how economic policies with automatic triggers can alleviate the financial burden of …
Economic Facts March 15, 2019

Nine facts about monetary sanctions in the criminal justice system

Interacting with the criminal justice system is an expensive proposition. Its reliance on bail to encourage return after pretrial release, on fines to punish a…
Policy Proposals March 15, 2019

Proposals for improving the US pretrial system

On any given day, there are roughly half a million individuals in custody awaiting trial in the United States, nearly double that of any other country. This hi…
Policy Proposals January 31, 2019

Fact-based policy: How do state and local governments accomplish it?

Policymakers at the state and local levels tackle some of the toughest problems facing society. To make measurable progress in solving these problems, public p…
Papers December 19, 2018

The economics of bail and pretrial detention

Two thirds of the jail population consist of defendants who have not been convicted. This paper characterizes key trends in pretrial detention and the bail sys…
Posts February 16, 2018

It is impossible to make sound policy without high-quality data

The President’s 2019 budget contains a variety of proposals that would reshape policy and reallocate spending across various agencies and policy programs. As t…
Posts March 1, 2017

Defending the data

Federal statistical agencies provide indispensable data that strengthens governance, research, and innovation. In this blog, The Hamilton Project explores one …
Policy Proposals October 21, 2016

Graduated reintegration: Smoothing the transition from prison to community

High recidivism rates—some 50 percent of released prisoners return within three years—constitute a major factor driving both high crime rates and high incarcer…
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