Based on millions of earnings records from all across the US, this very important and extensive research project studies the impact of tax expenditures on intergenerational mobility. The findings show substantial variation in the economic outcomes of children from low income families across areas of the United States (City rankings and Interactive map available). Some areas have rates of upward mobility comparable to the most mobile countries in the world while others have lower rates of mobility than any developed country for which data are currently available. These geographical differences are modestly correlated with variation in tax expenditure policies across areas. The researchers identified four broad factors that appeared to affect #income #mobility, including the size and dispersion of the local middle class. All else being equal, upward mobility tended to be higher in metropolitan areas where poor families were more dispersed among mixed-income neighborhoods. Income mobility was also higher in areas with more two-parent households, better elementary schools and high schools, and more civic engagement, including membership in religious and community groups. Regions with larger black populations had lower upward-mobility rates. But the researchers’ analysis suggested that this was not primarily because of their race. Both white and black residents of Atlanta have low upward mobility, for instance. The authors - all of them are economists - emphasize that their data allowed them to identify only correlation, not causation.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Aug 2013 18:18:35 +0000
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