The essays in this volume discuss such timely topics as demographic change and the outlook for Social Security and Medicare in the United States; long term decision making under uncertainty; the effect of changing family structure on government spending; how the structure of public retirement policies has encouraged early retirement in some countries and not others; the response of local community spending to demographic change; and related topics. Contributors include many of the world's leading public finance economists and economic demographers.

net income. It draws on the experience gained when the social security system in Italy was reformed in the early 1990s, which led to drastic reductions in the number of claims against the statutory pension scheme. The various sectors of the population (elderly people, young people, public employees as opposed to private sector employees, etc.) were affected to differing degrees. From Brugiavini's estimates, it becomes clear that a reduction in claims against the statutory pension system has led to a markedly increased willingness to save, particularly in the sectors of the population which...

The debates about the what, who, and how of tax policy are at the core of politics, policy, and economics. The Economics of Tax Policy provides a straightforward overview of recent research in the economics of taxation.

Tax policies generate considerable debate among the public, policymakers, and scholars. These disputes have grown more heated in the United States as the incomes of the wealthiest 1 percent and the rest of the population continue to diverge. This important volume enhances understanding of the implications of taxation on behavior and social outcomes by having...