From 1999 to 2001, US budget surpluses averaged 2% of GDP. By 2011, the Congressional Budget Office was projecting persistent “current policy” budget deficits exceeding 6% of GDP, even after the economy recovered from the recession. This paper reviews the remarkable deterioration in the US...

The degree to which the Social Security tax distorts labor supply depends on the extent to which individuals perceive the link between current earnings and future Social Security benefits. Some Social Security reform plans have been motivated by an assumption that workers fail to perceive this...