September 2022
15Sep

Three Ways to Fix Latin America’s Public Finances

A former finance minister of Paraguay argues that feasible reforms can yield important results. Governments in Latin America and the Caribbean are facing a perfect storm of economic and social conditions as they seek to accelerate their post-pandemic recovery. Vulnerable communities need more help in the face of rising inequality and poverty. Health, education and other services need more resources. Governments must find a way to grow equitably and sustainably amid rising inflation, weaker world demand and high debt levels. The...

September 15, 2022
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July 2022
19Jul

UK. MPs back tax return solution for self-employed retirement savings

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Resilience has thrown its weight behind using the tax system to help the self-employed save for retirement. In a report analysing general financial resilience during the coronavirus pandemic, launched on July 18, the group called for the government to “co-ordinate an approach to improving pension saving in under-pensioned groups”. “This should involve an equivalent of automatically enrolling the self-employed into saving through the tax system,” it said. The APPG also called for an increase in take-up...

July 19, 2022
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June 2022
24Jun

Would the Securing a Strong Retirement Act Secure More Retirement Equity?

By Albert Feuer On March 29, 2022 the House approved H.R. 2954 that is titled the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 (the SECURE Act 2.0) by a vote of 414-5. On May 26, 2022, a discussion draft of the Retirement Improvement and Savings Enhancement to Supplement Healthy Investments for the Nest Egg (RISE & SHINE) Act of 2022 was released by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chair Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), and Ranking Member Senator Richard...

June 24, 2022
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17Jun

Would the Securing a Strong Retirement Act Secure More Retirement Equity?

By Albert Feuer On March 29, 2022 the House approved H.R. 2954 that is titled the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 (the SECURE Act 2.0) by a vote of 414-5. On May 26, 2022, a discussion draft of the Retirement Improvement and Savings Enhancement to Supplement Healthy Investments for the Nest Egg (RISE & SHINE) Act of 2022 was released by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chair Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), and Ranking Member Senator Richard...

June 17, 2022
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10Jun

The Missing Middle. How Tax Incentives for Retirement Savings Leave Middle-Class Families Behind

By Tyler Bond and & Doonan Saving for retirement is one of the biggest financial challenges most working Americans will face. While the vast majority will participate in Social Security, most will have less than half of their income replaced by Social Security in retirement. Therefore, many workers also will need to save for retirement through other plans, such as an employer-provided defined benefit pension plan or 401(k) plan, or on their own through an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). Congress...

June 10, 2022
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10Jun

US. Are Retirement Savings Tax Incentives Leaving the Middle Class Behind?

A new report by the National Institute on Retirement Security highlights the insufficiencies of current tax incentives in ensuring retirement security for the middle class. It includes marginal tax rates, retirement plan participation and income distribution on retirement savings levels as culpable factors. The report, “The Missing Middle: How Tax Incentives for Retirement Savings Leave Middle Class Families Behind,” also offers potential solutions that could enhance retirement security for middle-class families. Saving for retirement is one of the biggest financial challenges...

June 10, 2022
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03Jun

How the U.S. retirement system shortchanges the middle class

America has a vast and elaborate system of public policies supposedly designed to help us all save for retirement and avoid the catastrophe of a penurious and poverty-stricken old age. But does this system end up shortchanging the middle class that is the backbone of the country and the economy? That’s the accusation of a new report from the National Institute for Retirement Security, a nonpartisan think-tank. It’s hard to argue they’re wrong. Read also Governance Issues Loom Over US Pension...

June 3, 2022
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May 2022

Progressing Towards Efficiency: The Role for Labor Tax Progression in Reforming Social Security
19May

Progressing Towards Efficiency: The Role for Labor Tax Progression in Reforming Social Security

By Krzysztof Makarski, Joanna Tyrowicz & Oliwia Komada We study interactions between progressive labor taxation and social security reform. Increasing longevity puts fiscal strain that necessitates the social security reform. The current social security is redistributive, thus providing (at least partial) insurance against idiosyncratic income shocks, but at the expense of labor supply distortions. A reform which links pensions to individual incomes reduces distortions associated with social security contributions, but incurs insurance loss. We show that the progressive labor tax...

May 19, 2022
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Top-Income Adjustments and Official Statistics on Income Distribution: The Case of the UK
19May

Top-Income Adjustments and Official Statistics on Income Distribution: The Case of the UK

By Stephen P. Jenkins UK official statistics on income distribution have incorporated top-income adjustments to household survey data since 1992. This article reviews the work undertaken by the Department for Work and Pensions and the Office for National Statistics, and the academic research that influenced them, and reflects on the lessons to learn from the UK experience. Source: SSRN 217 views

May 19, 2022
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10May

More tax for thousands of retirees in South Africa

Thousands of retirees will find lower-than-expected pensions in their bank accounts at the end of this month owing to higher tax deductions. Thousands more already had this experience at the end of last month. This is as a result of administrators implementing tax directives issued by the South African Revenue Service (SARS) in an attempt to ensure the correct tax is collected upfront from retirees who receive more than one pension or a pension and salary income, said consumer financial...

May 10, 2022
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