Economics of US Social Policy

Economic analysis and research often provide important insights into appropriate policy.  However, how is this research used by policymakers?  How do (should) policymakers incorporate these findings when developing policy? This half-semester course will explore a variety of policy topics, focusing on current issues affecting workers and families in the United States.  All of these policies are actively being debated, many of them as potential responses to the COVID pandemic and associated economic crisis.  We will discuss the underlying economic theory and the existing empirical evidence, as well as how policymakers might incorporate this evidence in their decision-making.