See the analysis in PolicyEngine UK — Today, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a new Cost of Living Support package of cash transfers: £650 to households receiving means-tested benefits £150 to households receiving non-means-tested disability benefits £300 to households receiving the Winter Fuel Payment (i.e., those with pensioners) £200 to households receiving energy bills, doubling the…

Today, we’re beta-launching PolicyEngine US and several other new features. — Last October, we launched PolicyEngine UK, bringing free, open-source, web-based tax and benefit analysis to the UK for the first time. Since then, users have asked us one question more than any other: “When is it coming to the US?” …

Shilling for the bracket — TL;DR: vote for me in the Neoliberal Shill Bracket Update 2022–03–19: I narrowly beat Josh Barro in the first round and now face the YIMBY Neoliberal chapter. Update 2022–03–20: Congratulations to YIMBY Neoliberal for their victory. Thanks to those who supported me, here’s to next year! If you log on…

I gave the following public comment at tonight’s Oxnard City Council meeting, regarding a proposal to rezone commercial districts of the mixed-use Riverpark neighborhood to allow 1,025 apartments. The Oxnard Planning Commission suggested allowing only 613 apartments. Good evening Mayor Zaragoza, City Councilmembers, and City Staff, You know all the…

City Council should stop pretending we can solve our housing crisis without legalizing apartments. — Tomorrow, Oxnard City Council will vote on a proposal to cap rent increases at 5% per year (nominal), sunsetting in 2030. I sent them this email. In October, I shared with you evidence on the harms of rent control. These studies, from institutions ranging from Harvard to CSUN to the…

Citizens’ Climate Lobby thrived in Ventura County in 2021. Our two chapters, Ventura and Conejo Valley, conducted four lobbying meetings, published 37 letters and op-eds, grew our membership, secured an endorsement from the Oxnard City Council, and made over 350 contacts to legislators, all in support of stronger actions to…

PolicyEngine’s inaugural year was a substantial one for public policy: with variants continuing the lethal disruption of the coronavirus, tax and welfare responses remained prominent in discussion and policymaking across the world. When we launched in October, we did so with the mission to Make Everyone a Policymaker, aiming to…

Explore the basic rate and additional rate cuts in PolicyEngine — Yesterday, The Times reported that UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak is considering a number of tax cuts: Cutting the Income Tax basic rate from 20% to 19% in 2023, and then to 18% in 2024 Scrapping the Income Tax additional rate of 45%, lowering the tax rate to 40% for income…

Tonight, the Oxnard City Council will discuss the critical problem of housing affordability. Thanks to our high housing costs, Stanford and PPIC estimate that one in four residents of Oxnard and Port Hueneme are in poverty, one of the highest rates in California. The meeting will focus in particular on…