Publications
The Hamilton Project produces and commissions policy proposals and analyses to promote broad-based economic growth by embracing a significant role for well-designed government policies and public investment.
Posts
The softening labor market shows resilience and some pockets of slack
Our review of key labor market indicators finds that the labor market remains tight but shows some pockets of slack.
Employment & Wages
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Policy Proposals
A federal guarantee for earned paid time off
Economic Security & Inequality
Employment & Wages
Posts
Event recap—How would across-the-board tariffs create chaos in 2025?
Healthy Economy
Tax Policy & Budget
Posts
Immigration and the macroeconomy after 2024
Effective Government
Healthy Economy
Explore All Publications
How stabilizing has fiscal policy been?
Louise Sheiner and Michael Ng investigate the cyclicality of fiscal policy over the past 40 years, finding that fiscal policy has been increasingly countercycl…
Unemployment insurance and macroeconomic stabilization
Low recipiency rates and an imperfect Extended Benefits program weaken the unemployment insurance program’s effectiveness during recessions. Gabriel Chodorow-R…
Strengthening SNAP as an automatic stabilizer
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is both an effective antipoverty program and a natural automatic stabilizer, expanding when the economy is…
Recession Ready: Fiscal policies to stabilize the American economy
Slowdowns in the economy are inevitable. While it may be tempting to rely on Federal Reserve policy as a lone response to recessions, this would be a mistake; …
Infrastructure investment as an automatic stabilizer
Transportation infrastructure investment during economic downturns often occurs too slowly—and in insufficient quantities—to help stabilize the economy. Andrew…
Increasing federal support for state Medicaid and CHIP programs in response to economic downturns
In the face of large declines in tax revenues and increased demand for state programs during and after recessions, state governments are often forced to raise …
Improving TANF’s countercyclicality through increased basic assistance and subsidized jobs
The design of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program prevents it from providing sufficient assistance to families with children during econ…
Direct stimulus payments to individuals
Consumer spending, which makes up about 70 percent of aggregate expenditures in the economy, slows sharply during recessions. This slowdown can exacerbate empl…
