States Could Save $1.7 Billion Per Year with Federal Financing of Work Sharing

This issue brief looks at how work-sharing provisions signed into law by President Obama in February 2012 as part of the Middle Class Relief and Job Creation Act could help states reduce their unemployment rates and also save unemployment insurance (UI) costs for up to three years

The Incidence of Financial Transactions Taxes

As financial transactions taxes (FTT) have moved to be part of the mainstream debate on tax policy, there has been increased attention to the incidence of such taxes. This is an important aspect to the debate, since the merits of the tax will depend to a substantial extent on who will end up bearing the burden. There are three key issues in making this assessment:1) Which groups directly bear the burden in the sense of carrying through trades that will be subject to the tax;2) The extent to which tax payments will be offset by a reduction in trading volume, which lowers transaction costs; and3) The extent to which reduced trading will lead to a less efficient allocation of capital, and therefore reduce growth and output.The issues associated with the first point are straightforward, even if the data may not be as clear as would be desirable. The allocation of the tax will be in proportion to the volume of trading by each income group, however, there are not reliable data for trading by income group. As a first approximation, it can be assumed that trading is proportional to the financial assets held by each income group. These data are available from the Federal Reserve Board's Survey of Consumer Finances.The second issue depends on the elasticity of trading volume with respect to the cost of trading. If trading is very responsive to changes in transactions costs, then reductions in trading volume can offset much or even all of the tax. Investors may have to pay the tax on trades they conduct, but they will save money on other transactions costs because they do less trading. There is research that provides evidence on trading elasticity, although it does leave a wide range of uncertainty.The third issue is the most important one. If the high current volume of trading is somehow leading to a better allocation of capital, then reducing trading volume will lead to a less efficient allocation of capital. In this case, FTTs will lead to slower growth and less output. Here, the incidence of the tax depends on the apportionment of this lower level of output. Insofar as it means lower returns to capital, households will lose if they own capital. Insofar as it means lower returns to labor (i.e. lower wages) households will lose if they have workers relying on labor income.This paper discusses these issues in further detail, assessing what the evidence shows on each issue

Bringing Back Subprime? The Hazards of Restructuring the GSEs

There have been a number of proposals for replacing the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, with a system under which private financial institutions would issue mortgage-backed securities (MBS) that carry a government guarantee. This paper raises a number of questions about the merits of such a system. It points out that both the gains to low-income families seeking to become homeowners from such a system and interest rate savings are likely to be relatively modest, and that there are few obvious safeguards that would make this new system sounder than the system of privately-issued mortgage-backed securities in the bubble years

Occupational Gender Composition and Wages in Canada: 1987-1988

The relationship between occupational gender composition and wages is the basis of pay equity/comparable worth legislation. A number of previous studies have examined this relationship in US data, identifying some of the determinants of low wages in ``female jobs'' well as important limitations of public policy in this area. There is little evidence, however, from other jurisdictions. This omission is particularly disturbing in the case of Canada, which now has some of the most extensive pay equity legislation in the world. In this paper we provide a comprehensive picture, circa the late 1980's, of the occupational gender segregation in Canada and its consequences for wages. The sample period precedes many provincial pay equity initiatives and thus the results should provide a baseline for the evaluation of this legislation. We find that the estimated wage penalties in female jobs in Canada are generally much smaller than the estimates for the United States. Although there is some heterogeneity across worker groups on average, the link between female wages and gender composition is small and not statistically significant.

Managerial Descriptions Of Characteristics And Communication Rule Violations Of Millennial Employees: Insights Into The Hospitality Industry

Millennials are the newest generation to enter the workforce. When Millennials enter organizations, managers construct perceptions about Millennials’ communication behaviors, including their characteristics and adherence to organizational rules. These perceptions help managers decide Millennials’ organizational fit. A review of literature revealed a scarcity of empirical research in this area with little empirical research from communication scholars who apply communication frameworks, theories, and concepts. This research used the lens of social constructionism to understand the membership categorization devices and category-bound activities managers use to characterize Millennials. In order to better understand how Millennials conform to and change organizational culture, data were reviewed for those normative and code rules managers described Millennials violating. In this qualitative, exploratory study, 25 managers who were 31 years of age or older that worked in the hospitality industry and managed Millennial (18 to 30 years old) employees were interviewed through a snowball convenience sample. Interviews were transcribed and patterns were identified. Data analysis indicated that “kids,” “age group,” and “Millennials” and variations of the Millennial term were used to categorize Millennials. Analysis of category-bound activities showed patterns in Millennials’ desire for learning and training, mixed preference for teamwork often affected by their liking for peers, and needs for frequent, clear, personalized feedback. With respect to rule violations, data showed that some organizations were adapting their cell phone policies in response to Millennial rules resistance. However, organizations were not willing to accommodate Millennials’ rule violations in either the area of time-off requests or uncivil behavior due to organizational codes. iv Keywords: Millennials, social constructionism, membership-categorization devices, categorybound activities, communication rules, organizational assimilatio

Concerning the Performance of Mozart\u27s Concert Arias K. 294 and K. 528

Vocal treatises of the 18th c. and recent research suggest that Mozart\u27s concert arias should be embellished with restraint. Appropriate ornaments include turns, filling-in patterns, appoggiaturas, and short cadences at elongated fermatas. Two arias--Alcandro lo confesso...Non so d\u27onde viene, K.294, and Bella mia fiamma...Resta, o cara, K.528--are discussed in more detail

Essays on economics of education

This dissertation explores the effectiveness and consequences of three distinct education policies. The first chapter analyzes the effects of high school exit exams on graduation, employment and wage outcomes. We construct a state-graduation year cohort dataset using the Current Population Survey data, US Census data and information on the timing and difficulty of exit exams in different states. Using this dataset we analyze within-state variation in outcomes overtime. Overall, we find relatively modest effects of high school exit exams. We do not find consistent effects on graduation rates for exit exams that assess academic skills taught below the high school level; however, we find that more challenging standards-based exams reduce graduation rates. We also find that about one-half of the reduction in graduation rates associated with exit exams is offset by an increase in GED rates. Our analysis of labor market outcomes suggests that exit exams increase employment rates, but we find no effect of exit exams on the distribution of wages. Chapter two analyzes the institutional consequences of the California Class-Size Reduction (CSR) program. This program provides incentive funding if schools limit the class-size in grades K-3 to twenty or fewer students. We find that some schools and school districts limit their enrollment levels in order to maximize the CSR subsidy payment. In particular, the distribution of grade and district enrollments exhibits a prominent pattern of peaks that occur at multiples of twenty, where CSR payment is the largest. In order to achieve exact enrollment levels, schools must be reassigning students above the desired thresholds to nearby schools or nearby school districts. We also find that schools that limit their enrollments are well-performing schools with a low percentage of students who receive free or reduced price meals. The last chapter analyzes the academic consequences of the Texas Top 10 Percent Law. In 1998, state universities in Texas began using high school class rank as the sole factor in university admissions. This policy was implemented to increase enrollment of minority and economically disadvantaged students, but it generated criticism that such beneficiaries of rank-based admissions lack the academic preparation necessary to perform well in college. I test this claim by analyzing academic performance of rank-eligible students who attended UT Austin before and after the law. To account for grade inflation I use a difference-in-differences framework with students not eligible for rank-based admissions as controls. The difference-in-differences estimates may be overstated, however, because academic quality of the control group may have increased after the law. I use propensity score matching methods to correct for this. Finally, I correct for the confounding effects of GPA ceiling on the difference-in-differences estimates. Both the baseline and the adjusted estimates suggest that mean college GPA of rank-admitted students declined after the law

Understanding Health Literacy and Linguistic Factors Related to African Immigrant Engagement in Primary Health Care in the U.S.

Current methods quantify health literacy using assessments of basic literacy, cognitive skills and economic status. These methods fail to address the role of culture in health care settings. The purpose of this study is to identify and interpret cultural and linguistic differences among African immigrants in Massachusetts and how they translate to use of primary health care services. The results from this study may be helpful in developing interventions to improve African immigrant use of primary care in the U.S

Effects of various phytase concentrations in diets with low-phytate corn on broiler chick performance and metabolism

Research indicates a reduction of phosphorus content in fecal excreta with the supplementation of phytase to corn-soybean meal based diets or with the use of low phytate corn (LPC) in broilers. This study examined how 0--3 wk broiler chicks are impacted by concomitant phytase supplementation with LPC (0.136% phytate phosphorus (PP) by analysis) in the diet. Various levels of phytase from either 2500 or 5000 FYT/g of Peniophora lycii phytase product were used as experimental treatments. Efficacy of treatments was determined using a response curve created with increasing levels of monocalcium phosphate. Following a 6-day pretest, 576 broiler chicks were randomly assigned to one of the 12 dietary treatments, with 8 replicates and 6 birds per cage. Measurements of live performance, tibia ash, mineral digestibility and apparent metabolizable energy were obtained. Results showed phytase supplementation in diets containing LPC had a positive impact on broiler chick growth

A Phenomenological Study: Exploring African American Community College Students\u27 First-Year Experiences with College Adjustment and Persistence

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore African American community college students\u27 first-year experiences with college adjustment and persistence at a two-year, predominantly White community college. Tinto\u27s (1975) institutional departure theory which merges the constructs of social psychology and institutional climate was used in this study to analyze how social integration impacts African American community college student’s first-year college adjustment experiences. Tinto’s (1975) theory asserts that college students who experience an inadequate amount of social integration or view themselves as being of trivial value in the social and academic systems of a higher education institution, decrease in institutional commitment. This theoretical viewpoint demonstrates connections between high attrition rates and first-year college adjustment experiences of African American community college students. Due to the scarcity of qualitative literature that examines the interplay between social integration, persistence, and the first-year college adjustment experiences of African American community college students, a qualitative design was determined to be appropriate design for this study. Eleven participants from a large community college were involved in this study and were selected based on ethnicity, age, and academic year. Data was collected using individual interviews, a writing prompt, and a focus group. Data collected was analyzed using the memoing technique and clusters of meaning, and the data was organized and stored using the Microsoft Excel software. The findings of this study indicated that African American students’ adjustment, motivation, and perseverance were impacted by first-year challenges with college transition and support, feeling a sense of belonging, and their institution’s cultural environment