In a statement issued today, 250 Ph.D. economists and more than 50 social insurance experts with doctorates in related fields expressed their opposition to proposals aimed at reducing the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment by tying it to an index (the chained CPI-U) that does not reflect the spending patterns of beneficiaries. Tying the COLA to a chained CPI would result in a 3 percent benefit cut after 10 years and a 6 percent cut after 20 years. It would have the greatest impact on older retirees and disabled beneficiaries, who are often the poorest beneficiaries.

The initiative was led by economists Dean Baker, J. Bradford DeLong, Heidi Hartmann, EPI President Lawrence Mishel, William E. Spriggs, and sociologist Eric R. Kingson. For more information and to read the full statement and EPI’s press release, click below:

Each decision Congress makes on tax and spending provisions carries varying budgetary costs and implications for economic recovery.

EPI researchers have analyzed the so-called “fiscal cliff” of spending reductions and expiring tax cuts that had been scheduled for 2013 and were projected to induce an austerity recession, as well as the economic impacts of the lame-duck budget and additional fiscal policy proposals. For analyses on the impact of recent budget decisions and other policy recommendations, here is all of our recent work on the issue:

Reports

• Issue Brief #349: ‘Small business’ and top marginal rates: Tax filers affected by proposed rate increases are not necessarily small, or businesses, or job creators (Dec. 13)
• Policy Memo #197: Green ‘sequester’ is already costing U.S. jobs: Job losses from ongoing clean-tech cuts will rival those from defense cuts (Dec. 6)
• Statement: Social insurance experts oppose changing the Social Security COLA (Nov. 20)
• EPI’s proposal: Investing in America’s economy: A budget blueprint for economic recovery (Nov. 16)
• Policy Memo #196: The ‘fiscal cliff’ and beyond: Principles for upcoming budget debates (Nov. 15)
• Issue Brief #345: Navigating the fiscal obstacle course: Supporting job creation with savings from ending the upper-income Bush-era tax cuts (Nov. 14)
• Issue Brief #343: Who would promote job growth most in the near term? Macroeconomic impacts of the Obama and Romney budget proposals (Sept. 26)
• Issue Brief #338: A fiscal obstacle course, not a cliff: Economic impacts of expiring tax cuts and impending spending cuts, and policy recommendations (Sept. 18)

Blog posts and commentary

• “When and what kind of deficit reduction matters most: The danger of aggressive 10-year deficit targets” (Jan. 25)
• “The importance of revenue revisited: Minimizing the drag of austerity” (Jan. 24)
• “Strengthening the EITC and raising the minimum wage should go hand-in-hand” (Jan. 7)
• “The Bush tax cuts are here to stay” (Jan. 7)
• “At best, budget deal suggests decelerating anemic growth, labor market deterioration” (Jan. 3)
• “More fiscal implications of a rising capital-share of income” (Jan. 2)
• “So the ‘fiscal cliff’ has been addressed. The next priority should be to address the fiscal cliff.” (Jan. 2)
• “Boehner’s ‘Plan B’ would result in an austerity-induced recession” (Dec. 21)
• “The 15 worst economic ideas of 2012” (Dec. 21)
• “Fiscal fiasco: The first to be hurt will be the unemployed” (Dec. 21)
• “Impact of proposed Social Security cut on blacks and Hispanics, take 2” (Dec. 21)
• “The middle class does NOT extend up to $400K” (Dec. 21)
• “Let the Bush tax cuts expire, there are better options” (Dec. 20)
• “A Social Security cut could lead to higher Latino and black elder poverty” (Dec. 19)
• “The unkindest cut” (Dec. 18)
• “Social Security has no place in ‘fiscal cliff’ negotiations” (Dec. 18)
• “If you’re writing about the ‘fiscal cliff,’ you need to read The State of Working America (Dec. 18)
• “Reading the tea leaves on financial markets and fiscal austerity” (Dec. 17)
• “6 reasons why the debt ceiling should be scrapped” (Dec. 5)
• “Want jobs? Kill the Bush tax cuts and extend emergency unemployment compensation” (Dec. 5)
• “A good first step, but full recovery would still be far, far away” (Nov. 30)
• “Obama’s opening bid is both familiar and sound” (Nov. 30)
• “President Obama wants to cut domestic spending and protect public investments, but his budget only cuts” (Nov. 29)
• “True deficit hawks would be worried with jobs and recovery first” (Nov. 28)
• “Don’t call it a fiscal cliff” (Nov. 27)
• “Since when do we congratulate ourselves just for not going over a cliff?” (Nov. 19)
• “The fiscal cliff and downgrading U.S. debt” (Nov. 19)
• “Five job creation policies for handling the fiscal obstacle course and slowing deficit reduction” (Nov. 15)
• “Recommendations for successfully navigating the fiscal obstacle course” (Nov. 15)
• “Boehner’s talking about accelerating deficit reduction, not avoiding the fiscal obstacle course” (Nov. 13)
• “Congressional Budget Office confirms EPI’s findings on the fiscal obstacle course” (Nov. 9)
• “What does President Obama’s re-election mean for the ‘fiscal cliff?'” (Nov. 8)
• “Enacting a ‘grand bargain’ doesn’t equate to navigating the fiscal obstacle course” (Nov. 5)
• “Worrying about the fiscal cliff just leads to victory dances from Keynesians…” (Nov. 1)
• “Avoiding a double-dip recession doesn’t require extending the Bush tax cuts” (Sept. 19)