Comparing Democratic and Republican Approaches to Fixing Social Security: An Analysis of the Larson and Johnson Bills

Comparing Democratic and Republican Approaches to Fixing Social Security: An Analysis of the Larson and Johnson Bills. Urban Institute. Richard W. Johnson, Karen E. Smith. December 2, 2020

Democrats and Republicans have floated proposals to address Social Security’s long-term financing deficit. We examine two leading congressional Social Security plans, one from Representative John Larson (D-CT) and another from former representative Sam Johnson (R-TX). Although both plans would balance projected program revenue and spending over the next 75 years, they would follow different paths to that goal. Larson’s plan would increase benefits, whereas Johnson’s plan would shrink benefits. Both plans would reduce future poverty rates for adult Social Security beneficiaries below the rates that would prevail if the trust funds ran out and all beneficiaries experienced the same percentage cut in payments. [Note: contains copyrighted material].

[PDF format, 42 pages].

Reimagining Rural Policy: Organizing Federal Assistance to Maximize Rural Prosperity

Reimagining Rural Policy: Organizing Federal Assistance to Maximize Rural Prosperity. Brookings Institution. Anthony F. Pipa and Natalie Geismar. November 19, 2020

As the 2020 election showed, America’s political polarization is as deep as ever. But the differences among America’s metropolitan and small-town communities are not always ideological, but informed by decades of divergence in prosperity between the nation’s booming cities and its rural areas.

As rural communities adapt to 21st century shifts in the national and global economy, demographics, and climate, the fallout from COVID-19 and the attention to racial injustice adds new urgency to their situation. A recovery from COVID-19 that strengthens America’s economic resilience and prosperity, reduces its social vulnerabilities, and addresses long-standing racial and social inequities will require policies that enable more diverse places—as well as people—to thrive. [Note: contains copyrighted material].

[PDF format, 38 pages].

The Digital Divide: What Is It, Where Is It, and Federal Assistance Programs

The Digital Divide: What Is It, Where Is It, and Federal Assistance Programs. Congressional Research Service. Colby Leigh Rachfal, Angele A. Gilroy. November 17, 2020

As the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic began to unfold, many federal, local, and state governments, in addition to large and small businesses, implemented remote working or distance learning options to help abate the spread of the virus. As these decisions were made, some of the population had the option and the capability to shift activities online, while others did not. The digital divide has been used to characterize a gap between those Americans who have access to telecommunications and information technologies and those who do not. One subset of the digital divide debate concerns access to high-speed internet, also known as broadband. Broadband is provided by a variety of technologies (e.g., cable, telephone wire, fiber, satellite, and mobile and fixed wireless) that give users the ability to send and receive data at volumes and speeds that support a wide range of applications, including voice communications, entertainment, telemedicine, distance education, telework, ecommerce, civic engagement, public safety, and energy conservation.

[PDF format, 27 pages].

A Brief Overview of Business Types and Their Tax Treatment

A Brief Overview of Business Types and Their Tax Treatment. Congressional Research Service. Mark P. Keightley. Updated December 9, 2020

In the United States, how a business is taxed at the federal level is partly dependent on how it is organized. The income of subchapter C corporations, also known as “regular” corporations, is taxed once at the corporate level according to the corporate tax system, and then a second time at the individual-shareholder level according to the individual tax rates when corporate dividend payments are made or capital gains are recognized. This leads to the so-called “double taxation” of corporate income. Businesses that choose any other form of organization are, in general, not subject to the corporate income tax. Instead, the income of these businesses passes through to their owners and is taxed according to individual income tax rates. Examples of these alternative “pass-through” forms of organization include sole proprietorships, partnerships, subchapter S corporations, and limited liability companies.

This report summarizes the general tax treatment of corporate and pass-through businesses. The intent is to introduce those who are unfamiliar with the current U.S. business tax environment to the basics of corporate and pass-through taxation. Understanding how various businesses are taxed provides a starting point from which one can evaluate current and future proposals to change the taxation of corporations and pass-throughs. Additionally, since pass-through income is typically taxed only at individual income tax rates, this report is also a useful starting point for understanding the effects on pass-through businesses from a change to individual income tax rates.

[PDF format, 12 pages].

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Incentives: A Summary of Federal Programs

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Incentives: A Summary of Federal Programs.  Congressional Research Service. Lynn J. Cunningham, Rachel J. Eck. Updated November 3, 2020

Energy is crucial to operating a modern industrial and services economy. Concerns about the availability and cost of energy and about environmental impacts of fossil energy use have led to a wide variety of federal incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency. These incentives aim to implement renewable energy and energy efficiency measures and to develop and commercialize renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.

Many of the existing energy efficiency and renewable energy programs have authorizations tracing back to the 1970s. Many programs have been reauthorized and redesigned repeatedly to meet changing economic factors. The programs apply broadly to sectors ranging from industry to academia and from state and local governments to rural communities.

[PDF format, 65 pages].

Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020)

Federal Wildfire Management: Ten-Year Funding Trends and Issues (FY2011-FY2020). Congressional Research Service. Katie Hoover. October 28, 2020

Wildfire management is a series of coordinated activities to prepare for, resolve, and recover from wildfire events. The federal agencies responsible for wildfire management include the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service (FS) and the Department of the Interior (DOI). FS carries out wildfire response and management across the 193 million acres of national forests and national grasslands; DOI carries out these activities on more than 400 million acres of national parks, wildlife refuges and preserves, Indian reservations, and other public lands. The federal agencies also coordinate wildfire response activities with state and local governments as needed. 

[PDF format, 37 pages].

Federal Civilian Workforce Hiring, Recruitment, and Related Compensation Practices for the Twenty-First Century: Review of Federal HR Demonstration Projects and Alternative Personnel Systems to Identify Best Practices and Lessons Learned

Federal Civilian Workforce Hiring, Recruitment, and Related Compensation Practices for the Twenty-First Century: Review of Federal HR Demonstration Projects and Alternative Personnel Systems to Identify Best Practices and Lessons Learned. RAND Corporation.  Ginger Groeber et al. September 28, 2020.

The U.S. government employs around 2 million civilian personnel. The authority to hire and manage civilians is covered by a patchwork of human capital programs and rules that, over time, has failed to keep pace with the dynamics of a twenty-first century workforce. Federal human resources (HR) managers have complained that federal hiring procedures were rigid and complex. In an attempt to address such problems, the government has created an intricate system of demonstration projects, alternative personnel systems (APSs), and direct-hire authorities that have targeted select agencies and job types. While adding flexibility, these reforms have often resulted in multiple HR systems and greater complexity in managing federal personnel. One goal of the 2018 President’s Management Agenda is to enable simple and strategic hiring practices, and the Department of Defense was tasked with examining best practices of federal demonstration projects and APSs. Toward this end, the authors identified best practices for recruiting, hiring, and compensation in 41 federal demonstration projects and APSs that began between January 2008 and May 2019. Informed by a literature review and discussions with civilian human resource professionals, the authors categorized best practices into three effectiveness groups: best, promising, and innovative. This review of program practices also revealed shortfalls in the evaluation process and implementation of these programs. The findings can inform the government’s direction as it addresses the need for a talented and high-performing workforce supported by contemporary and effective human resource systems and practices. [Note: contains copyrighted material].

[PDF format, 138 pages].

Federal Tools to Create Places of Opportunity for All

Federal Tools to Create Places of Opportunity for All. Urban Institute. Margery Austin et al. October 15, 2020

The Opportunity for All series offers bold ideas for federal action to reverse the legacy of segregation and disinvestment in communities of color and ensure that every family can live in a neighborhood that supports their well-being and their children’s ability to thrive. But progress on these and other promising ideas could inadvertently be undermined by other federal policy choices that fail to consider place, race, and access to opportunity. Therefore, this essay advances three overarching tools to expand access to opportunity through federal policies and investments while leveraging local and state innovation: 1) vigorously enforce the long-neglected statutory mandate to affirmatively further fair housing; 2) implement a place-conscious equity review process for all major discretionary spending and new federal policies; and 3) launch a “race-to-the-top” competition that rewards the boldest regional and state equitable development strategies. [Note: contains copyrighted material].

[PDF format, 18 pages].

Fiscal Effects of COVID-19

Fiscal Effects of COVID-19. Brookings Institution.  Alan J. Auerbach et al. September 24, 2020 

The COVID-19 pandemic and the associated policy responses have had a significant impact on government budgets. Federal spending has skyrocketed. State and local governments, almost all of which face some form of annual balanced budget rule, confront fiscal shocks on both the revenue and spending sides that threaten to make the recession deeper and slow the recovery. This paper examines the impact of COVID on the fiscal status of the federal government and the states. [Note: contains copyrighted material].

[PDF format, 98 pages].

Identifying TV Political and Issue Ad Sponsors in the Digital Age

Identifying TV Political and Issue Ad Sponsors in the Digital Age. Congressional Research Service. Dana A. Scherer. September 9, 2020

Since the 1930s, both Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have imposed specific requirements on the transmission of political and issue advertising by broadcasters. These rules, which now apply to broadcast radio and television stations, cable and satellite television distributors, and satellite radio services, mandate that the sponsors of political and issue ads be clearly identified within each announcement and that media organizations maintain files of political advertisers’ requests for advertising time and make those files available for public inspection.

[PDF format, 34 pages].