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Congressional Budget Office
Methodological Improvements for
CBO’s Analysis of the
Distribution of Household Income
Distrib...
1CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
2CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Two major methodology changes in the
forthcoming report on the distribution of
household inco...
3CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Why?
Distributional Analyses Have
Historically Been Tax-Centric
4CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
• Everyone pays taxes
(either directly or indirectly).
• The tax system has explicit
progress...
5CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
But there’s more to
government than just taxes.
6CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Increasingly, the distinction between tax
and spending policies is more about the
legislative...
7CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO will use a new framework to analyze
how means-tested transfers and federal
taxes jointly ...
8CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO’s Previous
Distributional Framework
9CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Labor Income: Wages and salaries
Business Income: Income from businesses and fa...
10CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Cash and In-Kind
Government Transfers
+
Social Security
Medicare
Medicaid
Supp...
11CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Before-Tax
Income
=+
CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework
Cash and In-Kind
...
12CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Before-Tax
Income
‒
=+
Individual Income Taxes
Payroll Taxes
Corporate Income ...
13CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Before-Tax
Income
After-Tax
Income
‒
=+
=
CBO’s Previous Distributional Framew...
14CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Before-Tax
Income
After-Tax
Income
Federal Taxes
‒
=+
=
Used as the basis for ...
15CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Strengths Shortcomings
• Before-tax income, a broad
income measure, is a proxy
for both over...
16CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO’s New
Distributional Framework
17CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
CBO’s New Distributional Framework
Labor Income: Wages and salaries
Business I...
18CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
+
Social Security
Medicare
Unemployment Insurance
CB...
19CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
=+
CBO’s New Distributional Framework
Mkt Income
Plu...
20CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
=
Means-Tested
Transfers
++
CBO’s New Distributional...
21CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
Mkt Income
Plus Social
Insurance
=
Federal Taxes
‒
M...
22CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
Mkt Income
Plus Social
Insurance
=
Federal Taxes
‒
M...
23CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
After-Tax
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
=
=
‒
Federal Taxes
Before Refundab...
24CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Market
Income
After-Tax
Income
Social Insurance
Benefits
=
=
‒
Federal Taxes
Before Refundab...
25CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Strengths Shortcomings
• The framework allows
analysts to calculate means-
tested transfer r...
26CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Before-Tax
Income
Framework
Average Federal Tax Rates
Market Income
Plus
Social Insurance
Be...
27CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Lowest Quintile
Middle Quintile
Fou...
28CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Lowest Quintile
Middle Quintile
Fou...
29CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Differences between the frameworks are
primarily at the bottom of the income
distribution.
D...
30CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013
-5
0
5
10
15
20
1980 1985 1...
31CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013
-5
0
5
10
15
20
1980 1985 1...
32CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
-5
0
5
10
15
20
1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benef...
33CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013
-5
0
5
10
15
20
1980 1985 1...
34CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Correcting for Underreporting of
Government Transfers
A Regression-Based Approach
With Preli...
35CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Explicit analysis of government transfers
requires a more thorough accounting of
transfer in...
36CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Underreporting of transfer income in the
CPS has increased over time, as is well
documented ...
37CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO’s goal is to obtain a more complete
(although partially imputed) accounting of
income fr...
38CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
This analysis is focused on three of the
largest means-tested transfer programs—
Medicaid, t...
39CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Means-Tested Transfers
40CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Reporting Rates in the CPS for Means-Tested Transfer
Programs, 1979 to 2013
CPS Recipients a...
41CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Researchers typically use one of three
methods to correct for underreporting:
• Administrati...
42CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Administrative matching offers near-perfect
accounting, but administrative microdata are not...
43CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO is opting for a regression-based estimation
approach, which is tractable for analyzing m...
44CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO’s preliminary regression-based
estimation has three steps:
1. Use reported data to estim...
45CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Step 1. Predicted probabilities are
estimated using a probit model with CPS-
reported receip...
46CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Individual characteristics include age,
race, education, labor force status,
disability, mar...
47CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Step 2. Transfer receipt is imputed to
nonreporters with the highest probability
of receipt ...
48CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Percentage of Adults Receiving Benefits
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 2...
49CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Percentage of Individuals Receiving Benefits
SSI Recipience Rates by Income, 2010
0
5
10
15
...
50CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Distribution of SNAP Recipients by Annual Household Income
as a Percentage of the Federal Po...
51CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Distribution of SNAP Recipients by Annual Household Income
as a Percentage of the Federal Po...
52CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Step 3. Transfer income is assigned to
recipients. The methodology underlying
that assignmen...
53CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
For SNAP and SSI, CBO derives the average
benefit per recipient from reported values
(by hou...
54CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 ...
55CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
For Medicaid, CBO derives the average
cost to the government per recipient from
administrati...
56CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Average Annual Cost per Medicaid Recipient,
1979 to 2013
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,0...
57CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO’s regression-based approach has both
strengths and limitations.
58CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
The approach is straightforward to
implement and easily scalable across
multiple programs. I...
59CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
It does not, however, account for false
positives in the CPS, and it assumes that
nonreporte...
60CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Social Insurance Benefits
61CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
CBO uses a different approach for
imputing social insurance benefits.
For its analysis of th...
62CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Receipt of social insurance benefits is
difficult to model with a regression using
the data ...
63CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Social Security Reporting Rates in the CPS, 2001–2013
0
20
40
60
80
100
2001 2002 2003 2004 ...
64CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
To impute Social Security benefits, CBO
creates a pool of eligible recipients for
each type ...
65CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
0
20
40
60
80
100
1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007...
66CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
To impute Medicare benefits, CBO makes
no change to reported recipients.
CBO assigns the ave...
67CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Preliminary Conclusions
68CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Income Inequality, 1979 to 2013
Gini Index
.35
.40
.45
.50
Market Income Plus
Reported Socia...
69CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
-8%
-7%
-6%
-5%
-4%
-3%
-2%
-1%
0%
1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 20...
70CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Ratio of Means-Tested Transfers to Base Income Measure
Means-Tested Transfer Rates by Quinti...
71CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
.0
.1
.2
.3
.4
.5
.6
.7
1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 200...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Notes to Figures
■ Slides 48 and 70: The reporting rate equals the weighted sum of
recipients ...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Notes to Figures (Continued)
■ Slides 55, 56, and 58: The Urban Institute’s Transfer Income Mo...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Notes to Figures (Continued)
■ Slides 77 and 78: The base income for the “CBO (Imputed Plus
Re...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Definitions
■ Market income consists of labor income, business income, capital
gains (profits ...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Definitions (Continued)
■ Means-tested transfers consist of payments and benefits from
Medicai...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
References
■ Michael Davern and others, “A Partially Corrected Estimate of
Medicaid Enrollment...
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
References (Continued)
■ Robert A. Moffitt and John Karl Scholz, Trends in the Level and
Distr...
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Methodological Improvements for CBO’s Analysis of the Distribution of Household Income

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CBO regularly produces reports on the distribution of household income and federal taxes. This presentation highlights two methodological improvements for these analyses:

A new income measure to rank households by and to use as the denominator in the calculation of average federal tax rates, and

A regression-based method to correct for underreporting of transfer income in household survey data.

The information is preliminary and is being circulated to stimulate discussion and critical comment.

Presentation by Kevin Perese and Bilal Habib, analysts in CBO's Tax Analysis Division, at the Distributional Tax Analysis Conference.

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Methodological Improvements for CBO’s Analysis of the Distribution of Household Income

  1. 1. Congressional Budget Office Methodological Improvements for CBO’s Analysis of the Distribution of Household Income Distributional Tax Analysis Conference Washington, DC September 13, 2017 Kevin Perese and Bilal Habib Tax Analysis Division As developmental work for analysis for the Congress, the information in this presentation is preliminary and is being circulated to stimulate discussion and critical comment.
  2. 2. 1CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
  3. 3. 2CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Two major methodology changes in the forthcoming report on the distribution of household income: • New income measure for ranking households and calculating average federal tax rates • Correction for underreporting of means-tested transfers in household survey data
  4. 4. 3CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Why? Distributional Analyses Have Historically Been Tax-Centric
  5. 5. 4CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE • Everyone pays taxes (either directly or indirectly). • The tax system has explicit progressive/redistributive properties. • There are high-quality tax data. • There is a lot of theoretical work on tax incidence in the economics literature. Distributional Analyses Have Historically Been Tax-Centric
  6. 6. 5CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE But there’s more to government than just taxes.
  7. 7. 6CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Increasingly, the distinction between tax and spending policies is more about the legislative process and less about the impact on households.
  8. 8. 7CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO will use a new framework to analyze how means-tested transfers and federal taxes jointly affect the distribution of household income.
  9. 9. 8CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework
  10. 10. 9CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Labor Income: Wages and salaries Business Income: Income from businesses and farms Capital Income: Capital gains, interest, and dividends Other Income: Mainly retirement income CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework
  11. 11. 10CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Cash and In-Kind Government Transfers + Social Security Medicare Medicaid Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Unemployment Insurance Housing Assistance CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework
  12. 12. 11CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Before-Tax Income =+ CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework Cash and In-Kind Government Transfers
  13. 13. 12CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Before-Tax Income ‒ =+ Individual Income Taxes Payroll Taxes Corporate Income Taxes Excise Taxes CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework Federal Taxes Cash and In-Kind Government Transfers
  14. 14. 13CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Before-Tax Income After-Tax Income ‒ =+ = CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework Federal Taxes Cash and In-Kind Government Transfers
  15. 15. 14CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Before-Tax Income After-Tax Income Federal Taxes ‒ =+ = Used as the basis for ranking households and as the denominator in average tax rate calculations. CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework Cash and In-Kind Government Transfers
  16. 16. 15CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Strengths Shortcomings • Before-tax income, a broad income measure, is a proxy for both overall economic well-being and ability to pay tax liabilities. • Before-tax income is therefore an appropriate denominator for calculating average federal tax rates. • The framework is tax-centric, so it is less suitable for distributional analysis of government transfers. • Therefore, the redistributive properties of transfers and taxes are not treated equally. CBO’s Previous Distributional Framework
  17. 17. 16CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO’s New Distributional Framework
  18. 18. 17CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income CBO’s New Distributional Framework Labor Income: Wages and salaries Business Income: From businesses and farms Capital Income: Capital gains, interest, and dividends Other Income: Mainly retirement Income
  19. 19. 18CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Social Insurance Benefits + Social Security Medicare Unemployment Insurance CBO’s New Distributional Framework
  20. 20. 19CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Social Insurance Benefits =+ CBO’s New Distributional Framework Mkt Income Plus Social Insurance
  21. 21. 20CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Social Insurance Benefits = Means-Tested Transfers ++ CBO’s New Distributional Framework Medicaid Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Housing Assistance, etc. Mkt Income Plus Social Insurance
  22. 22. 21CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Social Insurance Benefits Mkt Income Plus Social Insurance = Federal Taxes ‒ Means-Tested Transfers ++ CBO’s New Distributional Framework Individual Income Taxes Payroll Taxes Corporate Income Taxes Excise Taxes
  23. 23. 22CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income Social Insurance Benefits Mkt Income Plus Social Insurance = Federal Taxes ‒ Means-Tested Transfers ++ CBO’s New Distributional Framework Individual Income Taxes Payroll Taxes Corporate Income Taxes Excise Taxes Taxes Before Refundable Credits Refundable Tax Credits (significant portions classified as budgetary outlays)
  24. 24. 23CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income After-Tax Income Social Insurance Benefits = = ‒ Federal Taxes Before Refundable Credits ++ CBO’s New Distributional Framework Mkt Income Plus Social Insurance Means-Tested Transfers Refundable Tax Credits
  25. 25. 24CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Market Income After-Tax Income Social Insurance Benefits = = ‒ Federal Taxes Before Refundable Credits ++ CBO’s New Distributional Framework Mkt Income Plus Social Insurance Means-Tested Transfers Refundable Tax Credits Used as the basis for ranking households and as the denominator in average tax and transfer rate calculations.
  26. 26. 25CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Strengths Shortcomings • The framework allows analysts to calculate means- tested transfer rates, tax rates, and net tax and transfer rates. • It recognizes that life-cycle income patterns make social insurance benefits difficult to analyze in a cross-sectional framework. • The measure of income— market income plus social insurance benefits—does not fully represent one’s ability to pay tax liabilities. • Social insurance programs have some redistributive effects that the framework does not capture. CBO’s New Distributional Framework
  27. 27. 26CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Before-Tax Income Framework Average Federal Tax Rates Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benefits Framework Versus
  28. 28. 27CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Lowest Quintile Middle Quintile Fourth Quintile Highest Quintile Second Quintile Percent Before-Tax Income as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Average Federal Tax Rates by Income Group, 1979 to 2013
  29. 29. 28CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Lowest Quintile Middle Quintile Fourth Quintile Highest Quintile Second Quintile Before-Tax Income as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benefits as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Percent Average Federal Tax Rates by Income Group, 1979 to 2013
  30. 30. 29CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Differences between the frameworks are primarily at the bottom of the income distribution. Differences can be decomposed into two, partially offsetting, steps: 1. New denominator, and 2. New household rankings.
  31. 31. 30CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013 -5 0 5 10 15 20 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Lowest Quintile Second Quintile Percent Before-Tax Income as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure
  32. 32. 31CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013 -5 0 5 10 15 20 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benefits as Denominator and Before-Tax Income as Household Ranking Measure Lowest Quintile Second Quintile Before-Tax Income as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Percent
  33. 33. 32CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE -5 0 5 10 15 20 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benefits as Denominator and Before-Tax Income as Household Ranking Measure Lowest Quintile Second Quintile Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013 Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benefits as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Percent
  34. 34. 33CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Average Federal Tax Rates, by Select Income Groups, 1979 to 2013 -5 0 5 10 15 20 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Lowest Quintile Second Quintile Market Income Plus Social Insurance Benefits as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Before-Tax Income as Denominator and Household Ranking Measure Percent
  35. 35. 34CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Correcting for Underreporting of Government Transfers A Regression-Based Approach With Preliminary Results
  36. 36. 35CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Explicit analysis of government transfers requires a more thorough accounting of transfer income. CBO’s tax model draws its transfer income data from the Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey (CPS). The analysis in this section is conducted using only CPS data, before merging with administrative tax data.
  37. 37. 36CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Underreporting of transfer income in the CPS has increased over time, as is well documented in Wheaton (2008), Meyer, Mok, and Sullivan (2009), and Moffitt and Scholz (2009). As a result, CPS-based analyses are likely to understate income growth at the bottom of the distribution and the role of transfers in reducing income inequality.
  38. 38. 37CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO’s goal is to obtain a more complete (although partially imputed) accounting of income from government transfers in the CPS with enough precision for quintile- level distributional analysis.
  39. 39. 38CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE This analysis is focused on three of the largest means-tested transfer programs— Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI)—and the two largest social insurance benefits— Social Security and Medicare.
  40. 40. 39CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Means-Tested Transfers
  41. 41. 40CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Reporting Rates in the CPS for Means-Tested Transfer Programs, 1979 to 2013 CPS Recipients as a Percentage of Administrative Recipients 0 20 40 60 80 100 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 73 66 53 Medicaid SSI SNAP
  42. 42. 41CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Researchers typically use one of three methods to correct for underreporting: • Administrative matching, • Rules-based simulation, or • Regression-based estimation.
  43. 43. 42CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Administrative matching offers near-perfect accounting, but administrative microdata are not widely available. Examples: Davern et al. (2009); Meyer and Sullivan (2008). Rules-based simulation offers precise estimates at the micro level but requires a significant research investment. Example: The Urban Institute’s Transfer Income Model—see Zedlewski and Giannarelli (2015).
  44. 44. 43CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO is opting for a regression-based estimation approach, which is tractable for analyzing multiple programs over many years but is less precise at the micro level. That approach allows CBO to perform quintile-level distributional analyses of various transfer programs from 1979 onward. Example: Moffitt and Scholz (2009).
  45. 45. 44CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO’s preliminary regression-based estimation has three steps: 1. Use reported data to estimate the probability of receipt for all units. 2. Impute transfer receipt based on estimated probabilities. 3. Assign transfer income to recipients.
  46. 46. 45CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Step 1. Predicted probabilities are estimated using a probit model with CPS- reported receipt as the dependent variable. Independent variables comprise individual and household characteristics based on program rules and other factors associated with program participation.
  47. 47. 46CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Individual characteristics include age, race, education, labor force status, disability, marital status, and receipt of other means-tested transfers. Household/family characteristics include income (as a percentage of the federal poverty level), income composition, household size and structure, and geographic location.
  48. 48. 47CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Step 2. Transfer receipt is imputed to nonreporters with the highest probability of receipt until the administrative total is reached. This process is repeated to match the targets for each category (e.g., children, seniors).
  49. 49. 48CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Percentage of Adults Receiving Benefits 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 225 250 275 300 Annual Family Income as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level Medicaid Recipience Rates by Income, 2010 CPS (Reported Only) CBO (Imputed Plus Reported) The Urban Institute’s Transfer Income Model
  50. 50. 49CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Percentage of Individuals Receiving Benefits SSI Recipience Rates by Income, 2010 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 225 250 275 300 Annual Family Income as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level CPS (Reported Only) CBO (Imputed Plus Reported) The Urban Institute’s Transfer Income Model
  51. 51. 50CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Distribution of SNAP Recipients by Annual Household Income as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level, 1979 to 2013 Percentage of Recipients 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 CPS (Reported Only) 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 CBO (Imputed Plus Reported) 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 49% or Less 50%–99% 150%–199% 200% or More 100%–149%
  52. 52. 51CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Distribution of SNAP Recipients by Annual Household Income as a Percentage of the Federal Poverty Level, 2005 to 2013 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% 2005 2008 2011 The Urban Institute’s Transfer Income Model Percentage of Recipients 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 2005 2008 2011 CBO (Imputed Plus Reported) 49% or Less 50%–99% 150%–199% 200% or More 100%–149%
  53. 53. 52CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Step 3. Transfer income is assigned to recipients. The methodology underlying that assignment varies by program.
  54. 54. 53CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE For SNAP and SSI, CBO derives the average benefit per recipient from reported values (by household size and income-to-poverty ratio for SNAP, and by eligibility category for SSI). Those averages are then assigned to newly imputed recipients and are adjusted as needed to match administrative totals.
  55. 55. 54CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE 0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 Average Annual SNAP Benefits per Household, 1979 to 2013 Inflation-Adjusted 2013 Dollars Administrative Data Reporting Households Newly Imputed Households
  56. 56. 55CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE For Medicaid, CBO derives the average cost to the government per recipient from administrative data (by eligibility category). Those averages are then assigned to all recipients (CPS “reported” values are overwritten).
  57. 57. 56CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Average Annual Cost per Medicaid Recipient, 1979 to 2013 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 Inflation-Adjusted 2013 Dollars CPS Averages CBO Averages (From Administrative Data)
  58. 58. 57CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO’s regression-based approach has both strengths and limitations.
  59. 59. 58CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE The approach is straightforward to implement and easily scalable across multiple programs. Its distributional results are similar to those of rules-based methods.
  60. 60. 59CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE It does not, however, account for false positives in the CPS, and it assumes that nonreporters have the same characteristics as reporters. It has a limited ability to simulate different policy scenarios.
  61. 61. 60CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Social Insurance Benefits
  62. 62. 61CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE CBO uses a different approach for imputing social insurance benefits. For its analysis of the distribution of household income, CBO does not currently perform any explicit distributional analysis of social insurance benefits, since they are included in the base income measure.
  63. 63. 62CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Receipt of social insurance benefits is difficult to model with a regression using the data available in the CPS. It is dependent on life-cycle income/labor force participation, it is not means tested, and there are no income data for children in the CPS (which are needed to impute Social Security survivors’ benefits).
  64. 64. 63CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Social Security Reporting Rates in the CPS, 2001–2013 0 20 40 60 80 100 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 CPS Recipients as a Percentage of Administrative Recipients Disability Benefits Survivors Benefits Old Age Benefits 85 97 47
  65. 65. 64CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE To impute Social Security benefits, CBO creates a pool of eligible recipients for each type of benefit and randomly assigns receipt until the administrative counts are matched. The average benefit for each benefit type is then assigned to new recipients and aligned to administrative totals as needed.
  66. 66. 65CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE 0 20 40 60 80 100 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 Medicare Reporting Rates in the CPS, 1979 to 2013 CPS Recipients as a Percentage of Administrative Recipients 93
  67. 67. 66CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE To impute Medicare benefits, CBO makes no change to reported recipients. CBO assigns the average cost to the government per participant to all recipients. Benefits from the Low-Income Subsidy for Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage are allocated separately.
  68. 68. 67CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Preliminary Conclusions
  69. 69. 68CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Income Inequality, 1979 to 2013 Gini Index .35 .40 .45 .50 Market Income Plus Reported Social Insurance Benefits Market Income Plus Imputed Social Insurance Benefits Plus Reported Means- Tested Transfers Market Income Plus Imputed Social Insurance Benefits Plus Imputed Means-Tested Transfers Market Income Plus Imputed Social Insurance Benefits 0.00 0.35 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 .35
  70. 70. 69CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE -8% -7% -6% -5% -4% -3% -2% -1% 0% 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 -7 -8 Change in Gini Index, 1979 to 2013 Percentage Change Relative to Market Income Plus Imputed Social Insurance Benefits Reported Means-Tested Transfers Imputed Means-Tested Transfers
  71. 71. 70CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Ratio of Means-Tested Transfers to Base Income Measure Means-Tested Transfer Rates by Quintile, 1979 to 2013 .0 .1 .2 .3 .4 .5 .6 .7 Lowest Quintile Second Quintile Middle Quintile .0 .1 .2 .3 .4 .5 .6 .7 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 Fourth Quintile 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 Highest Quintile 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 All Quintiles CPS (Reported Only) CBO (Imputed Plus Reported)
  72. 72. 71CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE .0 .1 .2 .3 .4 .5 .6 .7 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 Means-Tested Transfer Rates, Lowest Quintile, 1979–2013 Ratio of Means-Tested Transfers to Base Income Measure CPS (Reported Only) CBO (Imputed Plus Reported)
  73. 73. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Notes to Figures ■ Slides 48 and 70: The reporting rate equals the weighted sum of recipients in the CPS (including CPS imputations) divided by the number of recipients in the administrative data, adjusted for recipients outside the CPS sampling frame. Where administrative totals are available on a monthly basis, they have been converted to reflect the total number of program participants across the calendar year. ■ Slide 55: Adults are defined as individuals age 18 to 64 who are not disabled. ■ Slides 55–58: Individuals or households are considered recipients if they participate in the program at any point during the calendar year.
  74. 74. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Notes to Figures (Continued) ■ Slides 55, 56, and 58: The Urban Institute’s Transfer Income Model (TRIM) is a microsimulation model that uses CPS data as a basis to simulate program rules for various transfer programs. It uses those rules to determine program eligibility, participation, and benefits. The current version of the model, TRIM3, provides publicly available imputations for most major welfare programs going back to 1993. For more details, see Zedlewski and Gianarelli (2015). ■ Slide 72: The reporting rate equals the weighted sum of recipients in the CPS (including CPS imputations) divided by the number of recipients in the administrative data. ■ Slides 75 and 76: Reported and imputed social insurance benefits are from Social Security and Medicare. Reported and imputed means-tested transfers are from Medicaid, SNAP, and SSI.
  75. 75. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Notes to Figures (Continued) ■ Slides 77 and 78: The base income for the “CBO (Imputed Plus Reported)” quintiles and means-tested transfer rates is market income plus imputed social insurance benefits. The base income for the “CPS (Reported Only)” quintiles and means-tested transfer rates is market income plus reported social insurance benefits. Means- tested transfers include Medicaid, SNAP, and SSI benefits.
  76. 76. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Definitions ■ Market income consists of labor income, business income, capital gains (profits realized from the sale of assets), capital income excluding capital gains, income received in retirement for past services, and other sources of income. ■ Government transfers are cash payments and in-kind benefits from social insurance and other government assistance programs. Those transfers include payments and benefits from federal, state, and local governments. ■ Before-tax income is market income plus government transfers. ■ Social insurance benefits are payments from Social Security for workers, spouses, survivors, and the disabled; Medicare; and unemployment insurance.
  77. 77. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE Definitions (Continued) ■ Means-tested transfers consist of payments and benefits from Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP; formerly known as the Food Stamp program), housing assistance programs, and several smaller programs. ■ Federal taxes analyzed here consist of individual income taxes, payroll taxes, corporate income taxes, and excise taxes. ■ After-tax income is before-tax income minus federal taxes. ■ Income groups are created by ranking households by various income measures, adjusted for household size. ■ Quintiles (fifths) contain equal numbers of people.
  78. 78. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE References ■ Michael Davern and others, “A Partially Corrected Estimate of Medicaid Enrollment and Uninsurance: Results from an Imputational Model Developed off Linked Survey and Administrative Data,” Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 34, no. 4 (2009), pp. 219–240, http://dx.doi.org/10.3233/JEM-2009-0324. ■ Bruce D. Meyer, Wallace K. C. Mok, and James X. Sullivan, The Under-Reporting of Transfers in Household Surveys: Its Nature and Consequences, Working Paper 15181 (National Bureau of Economic Research, July 2009), www.nber.org/papers/w15181. ■ Bruce D. Meyer and James X. Sullivan, Using Two-Sample Methods to Correct for Reporting Bias in Surveys, Working Paper 0902 (University of Chicago, December 2008), https://tinyurl.com/y8jjnqma (PDF; 176 KB).
  79. 79. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE References (Continued) ■ Robert A. Moffitt and John Karl Scholz, Trends in the Level and Distribution of Income Support, Working Paper 15488 (National Bureau of Economic Research, November 2009), www.nber.org/papers/w15488. ■ Laura Wheaton, Underreporting of Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the CPS and SIPP (Urban Institute, February 6, 2008), https://tinyurl.com/yd4caq7n. ■ Sheila Zedlewski and Linda Giannarelli, TRIM: A Tool for Social Policy Analysis (Urban Institute, May 2015), https://tinyurl.com/y7sbos8l.

CBO regularly produces reports on the distribution of household income and federal taxes. This presentation highlights two methodological improvements for these analyses: A new income measure to rank households by and to use as the denominator in the calculation of average federal tax rates, and A regression-based method to correct for underreporting of transfer income in household survey data. The information is preliminary and is being circulated to stimulate discussion and critical comment. Presentation by Kevin Perese and Bilal Habib, analysts in CBO's Tax Analysis Division, at the Distributional Tax Analysis Conference.

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