Is the United States CPI Biased Across Income and Age Groups? /

The recent Boskin Commission Report (1996) underscores a significant upward bias in CPI measurement in the United States. This may result in excessive cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of some entitlements in the federal budget because COLA is indexed to CPI. This paper presents some evidence that ov...

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Bibliografiske detaljer
Hovedforfatter: Erbas, S.
Andre forfattere: Sayers, Chera
Format: Tidsskrift
Sprog:English
Udgivet: Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 1998.
Serier:IMF Working Papers; Working Paper ; No. 1998/136
Online adgang:Full text available on IMF
Beskrivelse
Summary:The recent Boskin Commission Report (1996) underscores a significant upward bias in CPI measurement in the United States. This may result in excessive cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of some entitlements in the federal budget because COLA is indexed to CPI. This paper presents some evidence that overall CPI may be biased against lower income elderly households, the primary beneficiaries of COLA. Although a downward adjustment in CPI resulting in an across-the-board cut in COLA of entitlements may yield significant budgetary savings, it may result in a deterioration in income distribution against lower income elderly households.
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Fysisk beskrivelse:1 online resource (34 pages)
Format:Mode of access: Internet
ISSN:1018-5941
Adgang:Electronic access restricted to authorized BRAC University faculty, staff and students