Six Nobel Prize-winning economists issued a public warning about President Donald Trump’s proposed budget bill, calling its priorities harmful to the U.S. economy. In their joint statement made via nonpartisan think tank the Economic Policy Institute, they cited “grave concerns” over how the bill would affect U.S. households.
Their criticism focused on two things: tax cuts for corporations and high earners, and cuts to essential assistance programs. Their concern is that the bill would shift wealth upward while reducing economic stability for everyone else — but should Americans be concerned?
GO Banking Rates (via Yahoo! Finance)
June 16, 2025
According to the Economic Policy Institute, since 2021, 28 states have introduced or passed laws to weaken child labor protections, a trend the organization says is “deeply disturbing.” In 2024, states including Alabama, Florida, and Kentucky passed laws loosening child labor standards. In 2025, some states have continued the trend.
NEA Today
June 16, 2025
On Saturday, Trump is hosting a military parade in our capitol on his birthday costing $45 million at a time when service members, veterans and their families are being harmed by cuts to federal programs and services. Check out the Economic Policy Institute’s report on “100 days, 100 ways Trump has hurt workers.”
Salem Times Register
June 16, 2025
According to the Economic Policy Institute, the average living wage required for a single adult with three children in Alabama is over $78,000 — more than double what Michelle earns.
South Florida Media
June 16, 2025
Adam S Hersh, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, agrees it will lead to more negotiations.
“It seems like the two sides have agreed to postpone facing their deeper disagreements,” Hersh said.
Al Jazeera English
June 16, 2025
Sen. Hawley and Sen. Weltch’s bill is not the only one to be introduced that would boost wages for workers with the lowest incomes. The Raise the Wage Act of 2023 was a more generous bill, as it would have increased the federal minimum wage to $17 an hour by 2028, which the Economic Policy Institute estimates would boost incomes for nearly 28 million workers, representing around 19 percent of the U.S. labor force.
El Diario
June 16, 2025
Nina Mast, an analyst with the Washington D.C.-based Economic Policy Institute, told DW that child labor is exploitative or oppressive labor by a minor or “any work that is excessive in the sense that it interferes with a child’s education or health or well-being.”
Deutsche Welle
June 16, 2025
Josh Bivens, chief economist at nonpartisan think tank the Economic Policy Institute, said if the bill passes as-is, health providers would see a steep increase in what is known as uncompensated care, when people without coverage get sick but cannot afford to pay their medical bill.
“It means hospitals and doctors no longer receive that income stream from Medicaid payments,” Bivens pointed out. “Lots of them are going to be forced out of business and there’s going to be closures of hospitals, especially in rural counties.”
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Six Nobel laureate economists have signed an open letter opposing cuts to safety net programs in the budget reconciliation bill, warning the measure would add $5 trillion to the national debt.
While headlines about the latest Trump-Musk feud may catch more people’s attention, Bivens added the bill will have the biggest effects on Coloradans.
“I think the fact that six Nobel Prize winners said, ‘This is important enough for me to try to draw attention to the implications of this bill,’ should make people realize the stakes are really large,” Bivens emphasized.
Public News Service
June 16, 2025
Using methods similar to the Department of Commerce and the Economic Policy Institute, we estimate by 2024 the premium had more than halved since the 1980s.
The Economist
June 16, 2025