In the official models for projections and policy analysis used by the Treasury and the Social Security and Medicare Trustees, many key variables are assumed as a continuation of past trends. Even the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), with more sophisticated models, makes certain simplifying...

Whether U.S. workers are saving adequately for retirement is an important subject for employer and public policy. The optimal target levels of retirement savings are here determined through a comprehensive consumption and savings model in a life-long planning framework. The actual wealth...