The Society of Government Economists » Lunches

7/15 Lunch: Norton Francis of the Office of the Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia

Andrew Felton — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 05:00:24 +0000

The District through the Recession
A look at some District economic indicators over the period of the recession.
Download the presentation: The District through the Recession

6/17 Lunch: Jagadeesh Gokhale of the Cato Institute

Andrew Felton — Thu, 20 May 2010 19:00:06 +0000

Social Security: A Fresh Look at Policy Alternatives

Many of us suspect that Social Security faces eventual bankruptcy. But the government projects its future finances using long outdated methods. Employing a more up-to-date approach, Jagadeesh Gokhale here argues that the program faces insolvency far sooner than previously thought.

To assess Social Security’s fate more accurately under current and alternative policies, Gokhale constructs a detailed simulation of the forces shaping American demographics and the economy to project their future evolution. He then uses this simulation to analyze six prominent Social Security reform packages—two liberal, two centrist, and two conservative—to demonstrate how far they would restore the program’s financial health and which population groups would be helped or hurt in the process.

Arguments over Social Security have raged for decades, but they have taken place in a relative informational vacuum; Social Security provides the necessary bedrock of analysis that will prove vital for anyone with a stake in this important debate.

View the slides from the presentation.

5/20 Lunch: Karen Dynan of the Brookings Institution

Andrew Felton — Wed, 19 May 2010 05:00:15 +0000

Household Leveraging and Deleveraging
Presentation: Household Leveraging and Deleveraging

Dr. Dynan will explore the causes and consequences of the substantial increase in household indebtedness that occurred over the several decades preceding the financial crisis. She will then turn to the deleveraging in the household sector that appears to be underway right now. She will consider three key questions: (1) how the deleveraging is occurring, (2) whether the deleveraging is a good or bad thing for the economy, and (3) how much more deleveraging we might expect to see.

4/15 Lunch: Henry Bahn of the USDA

Andrew Felton — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 05:00:53 +0000

Haiti Food Security: Post Earthquake Update

3/18 Lunch: Steve Redburn of the Peterson-Pew Commission on Budget Reform

Andrew Felton — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 05:00:25 +0000

Choosing the Nation’s Fiscal Future

Presentation: Slides – Choosing the Nation’s Fiscal Future (PPT – 363K)

A mismatch between the federal government’s revenues and spending, now and in the foreseeable future, requires heavy borrowing, leading to a large and increasing federal debt. That increasing debt raises a serious challenge to all of the goals that various people expect their government to pursue. It also raises questions about the nation’s future wealth and whether too much debt could lead to higher interest rates and even to loss of confidence in the nation’s long-term ability and commitment to honor its obligations. Many analysts have concluded that the trajectory of the federal budget set by current policies cannot be sustained.

In light of these projections, Choosing the Nation’s Fiscal Future assesses the options and possibilities for a sustainable federal budget. This comprehensive book considers a range of policy changes that could help put the budget on a sustainable path: reforms to reduce the rate of growth in spending for Medicare and Medicaid; options to reduce the growth rate of Social Security benefits or raise payroll taxes; and changes in many other government spending programs and tax policies. The book also examines how the federal budget process could be revised to be more far sighted and to hold leaders accountable for responsible stewardship of the nation’s fiscal future.

You can view the book at:
http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12808.

2/18 Lunch: Richard Gilmore of GIC Group

Andrew Felton — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 20:00:29 +0000

A Carbon/GHG Index for Agriculture

Whatever the outcome of the cap and trade debate, US agriculture operates in a global food chain system where carbon/ GHG credits increasingly figure into investments and trade. Primary agriculture and value added agro-industries, including food and beverage manufacturing, the biofuel industry, biotech, fertilizer manufacturers and pulp and paper producers, offer significant opportunities for carbon emissions reductions and emissions offsets. For this particular reason, the two economic sectors are viewed as critical components in addressing the issue of climate change. Dr. Gilmore will discuss the development and applications of an index targeted to agriculture that can measure: 1/ financial gains from the introduction of new abatement technologies; 2/ balance sheet asset credit valuations; and 3/ minimize risk and maximize gains in valuations as a universal hedging instrument.

Rick Gilmore is President of GIC Group, an international agribusiness company.

The presentation: GIC-ACI Presentation_SGE.1802 (745kb PDF)

1/14 Lunch: Rebecca Blank of the Department of Commerce

Andrew Felton — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:00:46 +0000

The 2010 Census

The 2010 Census will involve the largest domestic deployment the Federal government has ever undertaken, designed to count the people living in 145 million households in the United States. This talk with discuss the design and implementation of the 2010 Census, including efforts to reach out to historically under-counted populations. There are public debates over a host of substantive issues as we near the beginning of the 2010 Census, including how to characterize and count same-sex couples, the best ways to employ and screen the 1.3 million temporary workers hired to help with the Census, and the established-since-1790 approach of including all residents, citizens and noncitizens, in the count.

Rebecca Blank is the Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs at the Department of Commerce

Update: presentation slides (13MB PPT)

12/3 Lunch: Carl Tannenbaum of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Andrew Felton — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:00:10 +0000

The Lessons of Recession

The current recession, and the associated financial crisis, have challenged some deeply held understandings about banking and the business cycle. Economists in the public and private sectors have been front and center in responding to these challenges. The latest news from the front will be discussed.

Update: presentation slides

11/19 Lunch: Douglas Holtz-Eakin

Andrew Felton — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:25:11 +0000

Health Care Reform and the U.S. Fiscal Future
Rising spending for Medicare, Medicaid and other health programs is a central feature of the daunting U.S. Federal fiscal outlook. What is the relationship between reform of the U.S. health care system and addressing the projected rise in federal debt? How successful are the current reform efforts in meeting these objectives?

Thursday, November 19, at Chinatown Garden, 618 H St NW
Washington, DC (Gallery Place metro). $16 for members, $20 for non-members (includes lunch). For reservations, please email andrew.felton@sge-econ.org by 11 am, Wednesday, November 18.

10/15 Lunch: Susan Offutt of the GAO

Andrew Felton — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 19:53:44 +0000

Update: Download the rapporteur’s report here and Dr. Offutt’s presentation here.

Dr. Susan Offutt, chief economist of the GAO, will speak on October 15, 2009.

The GAO, also known as the “congressional watchdog,” is the primary agency in charge of ensuring accountability in government spending. The GAO is playing a particularly important role in enforcing accountability and transparency in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a.k.a. the stimulus bill. Dr. Offutt will explain what the GAO does as an audit institution and discuss the role of economic analysis is supporting the GAO’s mission, especially with regard to the Recovery Act.

Please note that this lunch will be held at a different location.

When: 12:00 noon to 1:30pm
Where: Darlington House, 1610 20th St NW, Washington, DC
Cost: $20 members
$25 for non-members
(includes lunch)
Reservations: Before 11:00 am on Wednesday, October 11 to Andrew Felton
Metro: Dupont Circle (Red Line)