Jason Furman, National Economic Council
Presentation summary
- Inequality (four points)
- Inequality has been a decades long process
- Institutional factors: decline in labor unions, changes in the minimum wage, cultural perceptions about compensation
- Inequality especially pronounced at the top
- To be in the top 400 earners you need to make $110 million
- Tax system makes this worse, because of tax structure is regressive
- Unemployment is the most extreme form of inequality
- Inequality can negatively impact growth and democracy
- Inequality has been a decades long process
- Three lessons/policy implications
- 1. Focus on jobs – support the American Jobs Act
- Given all the criticism of the plan, where is the Republican alternative?
- 2. We can't fix every cause of inequality but the causes we can impact, we should
- Examples: minimum wage, college enrollment, unionization, health-care costs
- 3. Innovation can expand opportunities
- Examples: green energy, infrastructure such as wireless rural broadband
- 1. Focus on jobs – support the American Jobs Act