chPovertyrelief(福利经济学牛津大学,Barr).ppt

Chapter 10: Poverty relief Organization of the chapter 1. Introduction and institutions 2. Theoretical arguments for state intervention 3. Assessment of poverty relief 1. Introduction and institutions Major benefits aimed at poverty relief Income support, the final safety net for people under 60 Pension credit, for people aged 60 or over Housing benefit Working tax credit (in the USA the Earned Income Tax Credit) Child tax credit Child benefit 2. Theoretical arguments for state intervention 2.1. Arguments for intervention There are obvious equity arguments for wanting to relieve poverty There are also efficiency arguments Social unrest/crime Poor health (and hence low productivity) Criteria for assessing redistributive schemes The level of benefits. Targeting Cost The meaning of targeting Poverty relief should aim to assist All the poor (horizontal efficiency) Only (or mainly) the poor (vertical efficiency) 2.2 Different approaches to targeting Income testing Indicator targeting Self-targeting Income testing Income testing identifies poor people via their income Advantages: can target tightly Disadvantages Work disincentives Stigma Administratively demanding Indicator targeting Identify poor people via indicators other than income The ideal indicator is Highly correlated with poverty Exogenous to the individual Easily observable Advantages: avoids the ill-effects of income testing Disadvantages: gaps and leakages Self-targeting Price subsidies Conditional benefits 3. Assessment of poverty relief 3.1. Income-tested benefits Income support Assistance with housing costs 3.2. Working tax credits An example of an income test combined with indicator targeting (the work test) A number of variables are central to the design of such schemes The size of the maximum benefit The minimum number of hours a person has to work to qualify for benefits The rate at which benefit is clawed back as a person’s earnings rise How soon benefits respond to changes in income Whethe