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February 10, 2026
Trump Houses Are a Good Idea—If
…houses on small lots that are naturally affordable as a result. The context is this. Starter homes have become scarce in America. Small houses on small lots were once common—for…
February 9, 2026
Medicaid’s Multiple Roles
Matt Weidinger’s December 2025 commentary argued persuasively that complexity has become an impediment to rational reform of the nation’s safety net. By approving scores of new programs across several decades,…
February 3, 2026
Thankfully, Hunger in the US Remains Rare
…Women, Infants and Children (or WIC), and the National School Lunch program. At the same time, expanding these programs without addressing their nutritional shortcomings may be contributing to high rates…
February 2, 2026
Poverty and Dependency in the United States, 1939–2023
Abstract We compare trends in absolute poverty before (1939–1963) and after (1963–2023) the War on Poverty was declared. Our primary methodological contribution is to create a post-tax post-transfer income measure…
January 27, 2026
How to Prevent a Repeat of Massive Fraud and Abuse
Welfare fraud scandals in Minnesota have focused the nation’s attention on benefit abuse, and the US Department of Labor recently detailed a team there to investigate whether unemployment insurance (UI)…
January 21, 2026
Funding the Administration of Unemployment Benefits: Overview and Reforms to Improve Efficiency and Program Integrity
Executive Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic exposed significant flaws in the nation’s unemployment insurance (UI) system, which resulted in the improper payment of at least $191 billion—and potentially upwards of $400…
January 20, 2026
Committee on National Statistics Public Seminar: Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency: A Timeless Resource
Kevin Corinth of the American Enterprise Institute participated in a panel discussion centered on Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency, a report that since 1992 has articulated the…
December 29, 2025
To restore hope for families in poverty, let states lead on welfare reform
…Insurance Program as of August 2025. Millions more benefited from childcare assistance, rental subsidies or other federally supported services. The United States is a generous nation, and most agree that…
December 23, 2025
If you care about poverty, ditch the ACA expanded subsidies
…spending. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the cost of extending the enhanced subsidies is roughly $350 billion over 10 years. In a recent report for the National Academies of…
December 23, 2025
The Policy Lessons from Minnesota’s Massive Welfare Fraud
…who deserve serious jail time. But it means that, unless addressed in Washington, the same flaws will continue to leave welfare programs across the nation open to abuse. Not Just…