{"title":"How Economists Could Help Inform Economic and Budget Analysis Used by the US Congress","authors":"","doi":"10.1257/jep.38.2.3","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"The US Congress uses economic and budgetary projections, cost estimates for proposed legislation, and other analyses provided by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) as part of its legislative process. CBO makes assessments based on an understanding of federal programs and revenue sources, reading the relevant research literature, analysis of data, and consultation with outside experts—and often relies on economic research. This article begins with a discussion of the role of the Congressional Budget Office and then discusses how economists could conduct research that would help inform the Congress by improving the quality of the analysis and parameter estimates that CBO uses. It gives overall context and specific examples in seven areas: credit and insurance, energy and the environment, health, labor, macroeconomics, national security, and taxes and transfers.","PeriodicalId":15611,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Economic Perspectives","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":6.9000,"publicationDate":"2024-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Economic Perspectives","FirstCategoryId":"96","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1257/jep.38.2.3","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ECONOMICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The US Congress uses economic and budgetary projections, cost estimates for proposed legislation, and other analyses provided by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) as part of its legislative process. CBO makes assessments based on an understanding of federal programs and revenue sources, reading the relevant research literature, analysis of data, and consultation with outside experts—and often relies on economic research. This article begins with a discussion of the role of the Congressional Budget Office and then discusses how economists could conduct research that would help inform the Congress by improving the quality of the analysis and parameter estimates that CBO uses. It gives overall context and specific examples in seven areas: credit and insurance, energy and the environment, health, labor, macroeconomics, national security, and taxes and transfers.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Economic Perspectives (JEP) bridges the gap between general interest press and typical academic economics journals. It aims to publish articles that synthesize economic research, analyze public policy issues, encourage interdisciplinary thinking, and offer accessible insights into state-of-the-art economic concepts. The journal also serves to suggest future research directions, provide materials for classroom use, and address issues within the economics profession. Articles are typically solicited by editors and associate editors, and proposals for topics and authors can be directed to the journal office.