EPI in the news

• New report highlights affordability challenges in Davidson County for African American households

  “African American workers in the U.S. also earn less than White workers in the same occupations, with African American workers paid about 76 cents for every dollar paid to White workers with the same education and experience and in the same region, according to the Economic Policy Institute,” the report reads. “U.S. EEOC data show that race discrimination made up around 35-42% of all employment discrimination charges in Tennessee in 2009-2022.”

  WBIR-TV | April 16, 2026
• Harris County Turns Child Care Crunch Into 2027 Austin Showdown

  Behind the policy jargon is a simple problem: child care is expensive, and most Texas families cannot swing it without help. The Economic Policy Institute’s state fact sheets put average annual infant care costs in Texas at about $10,706 in 2025 and around $9,664 for a 4-year-old, and estimate that only about 26.5% of Texas families can afford infant care under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services benchmark. Those numbers help explain why county officials say local pilots, even when generously funded, are no match for statewide affordability pressures without changes in state funding and rules. The full breakdown is available from the Economic Policy Institute.

  Hoodline | April 16, 2026
• Let’s Replace All Corporate Chiefs With AI

  The economic logic of AI is that humans are expensive to employ, and no human is more expensive to employ than the human who runs the company. In 2024, the last year for which data are available, chief executives were paid, on average, 281 times what the typical worker earns, according to the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute. Why do we pay them anything at all?

  The New Republic | April 16, 2026
• North America’s shrinking workforce is feeling burned out and pessimistic

  Firms are holding on to workers but not expanding, said Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, owing to economic uncertainty brought on by tariffs and policy volatility.

  Employees, she said, sense that even a modest upswing in layoffs could “translate into a spike in unemployment pretty rapidly.”

  The National Post (Canada) | April 16, 2026
• GOP Food Stamp Work Requirements Hit Just as Jobs Dry Up

  The end result is easy to anticipate, said Ismael Cid-Martinez, economist with the Economic Policy Institute. More people will lose their food stamps because they can’t find work. They’ll go without and suffer all the attendant problems that come with chronic hunger. That condition causes people to fall sick more frequently and puts them at greater risk of chronic disease, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. For adults, that means even more difficulty finding a job. For kids, it also means delayed physical development and the inability to concentrate at school.

  …

  “Not to be overly pessimistic about this, but I think that one of the important things to keep in mind is, these are all policy choices,” Cid-Martinez said. “We’re not in this position because of forces beyond our control.”

  The American Prospect | April 16, 2026
• Understanding the Cost of Living Index in the U.S.

  The Economic Policy Institute provides families with updated cost-of-living data for various metro areas throughout the U.S. with a helpful Family Budget Calculator.

  Investopedia | April 16, 2026
• Opinion – Taxing millionaires and billionaires is a political no brainer for Democrats

  This unholy concentration of wealth has occurred even though worker productivity has risen. Americans are working harder but getting paid less for the fruits of their labors. Research released last month by the Economic Policy Institute showed that the gap between a typical worker’s pay and productivity has risen dramatically since 1979.

  The Hill | April 16, 2026

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