This paper provides new evidence on the family gap in pay - the differential in hourly wages between women with children and women without children - between 1967 and 2013, five decades that include important changes in women's employment, especially mothers employment, policy reforms as well as contrasting economic cycles. We use data from the Current Population Survey and adjust for selection into motherhood, by estimating ordinary least square models and (as a robustness check) applying augmented inverse probability of treatment weighting, using the standard doubly robust estimator. For women overall, we find a decline in the family gap over this period from 6 percent in 1967 and 1968 to about 1 percent in 2011 through 2013. However, results vary by marital status, education, race-ethnicity, immigration status, temporal flexibility, and occupation. The most striking difference we find is between mothers who are married and those who are not. The family gap declined for married mothers and was replaced by a positive wage differential in the most recent period, whereas for unmarried mothers, a wage gap persisted throughout the two decades, rising to a notable high of 10 percent in 1996 through 1998.

I examine the extent to which the returns to college majors are impacted by selective occupational choice and migration across locations in the U.S. There are large differences across locations in major-specific earnings premiums, migration rates, and propensity to work in related occupations. These spatial differences indicate that selective migration and occupational choice might be an important reason for cross-major earnings variation. To quantify the role of selection, I develop and estimate an extended Roy model of migration, occupational choice, and earnings where individuals choose in which U.S. state to live and in which occupation to work upon completing their education. In order to estimate this high-dimensional choice model, I make use of machine learning methods that allow for model selection and estimation simultaneously in a non-parametric setting. I find that selection in location and occupational choice is an important determinant of earnings differences across majors, but that the magnitude is small. This finding suggests that nonpecuniary preferences associated with post-graduation decisions are important determinants of labor market outcomes.

This paper studies the impact of unilateral divorce laws on child weight gain. I use difference-in-differences approach exploiting time and state variation in the adoption of the unilateral divorce law. I analyze a comprehensive nationwide health examination survey (NHANES I) during 1971-1974. The results show that exposure to unilateral divorce law leads to bigger Body Mass Index (BMI) for children between 2 and 18 years. However, according to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), this weight gain is still under the normality patterns. Results indicate that for the specific age group of children between 7 and 18 years the exposure to unilateral divorce law leads to bigger BMI and bigger probability to be overweight. I also investigate the possibles transmission mechanisms for the increase in BMI.

Objective Institutional entry or long-term care (LTC) is an important area to investigate owing to global aging. This study examines which types of disabilities lead to institutionalization for older White and Black women in the United States. Methods Using the 3-year (2009–2011) American Community Survey cross-sectional data, this study applies semi-nonparametric maximum likelihood estimation methods to examine the association between disability and institutional entry on a sample of 222,562 older White women and 19,229 older Black women. This approach provides consistent estimators because no assumptions are made about the distribution of the error terms. Results For older White women, the risk of entering LTC is high in the presence of self-care and independent living difficulties (1.10 [p < .01] and 0.54 [p < .01], respectively). For older Black women, the risk of entering LTC is elevated in the presence of self-care difficulty and cognitive impairment (1.56 [p < .01] and 0.48 [p < .01], respectively) but widowed/divorced/separated marital states do not show this association. Conclusions Disability, marital status, and race are important considerations for assessing the risk of institutional entry. Impairments that limit personal hygiene and self-care are associated with increased risk for older women. Additionally, limitations that affect reasoning and memory are associated with increased risk for older Black women.

In this paper, we assess the U.S. demand for low-temperature thermal energy at the county resolution for four major end-use sectors: residential buildings, commercial buildings, manufacturing facilities, and agricultural facilities. Existing, publicly available data on the U.S. thermal demand market are characterized by coarse spatial resolution, with assessments typically at the state-level or larger. For many uses, these data are sufficient; however, our research was motivated by an interest in assessing the potential demand for direct use (DU) of low-temperature (30 degrees to 150 degrees C) geothermal heat. The availability and quality of geothermal resources for DU applications are highly spatially heterogeneous; therefore, to assess the potential market for these resources, it is necessary to understand the spatial variation in demand for low-temperature resources at a local resolution. This paper presents the datasets and methods we used to develop county-level estimates of the thermal demand for the residential, commercial, manufacturing, and agricultural sectors. Although this analysis was motivated by an interest in geothermal energy deployment, the results . . .

Background: Previous analyses have suggested that unregulated private drinking water wells carry a higher risk of exposure to microbial contamination compared with regulated community water systems. In NC, approximately 35% of the states population relies on private wells, but the health impact associated with widespread reliance on such unregulated drinking water sources is unknown. Objectives: We estimated the total number of emergency department visits for acute gastrointestinal illness attributable to microbial contamination in private wells in North Carolina per year, the costs of those visits, and the potential health benefits of extending regulated water service to households currently relying on private wells for their drinking water. Methods: We developed a population intervention model using 2007-2013 data from all 122 North Carolina emergency departments along with microbial contamination data for all 2,120 community water systems and for 16,138 private well water samples collected since 2008. Results: An estimated 29,400 (95% CI 26,600 32,200) emergency department visits per year for acute gastrointestinal illness were attributable to microbial contamination in drinking water, constituting approximately 7.3% (95% CI 6.6-7.9%) of all AGI-related visits. Of these attributable cases, 99% (29,200; 95% CI 26,500-31,900) were associated with private well contamination. The estimated state-wide annual cost of emergency department visits attributable to microbiological contamination of drinking water is $40.2 million (95% CI $2.58-$193 million), of which $39.9 million (95% CI $2.56-192 million) is estimated to arise from private well contamination. An estimated 2,920 (95% CI 2,6503,190) annual emergency department visits could be prevented by extending community water service to 10% of the population currently relying on private wells. Conclusions: This research provides new evidence that extending regulated community water service to populations currently relying on private wells may decrease the population burden of acute gastrointestinal illness.

The U.S. healthcare industry has been an engine for job growth over the last couple of decades. Much of the job growth has occurred among healthcare occupations that require less than a bachelors degree, and are often referred to as low- and middle-skilled occupations. Healthcare occupations predominate among the twenty occupations with the fastest projected growth rate over the next decade according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).1 Many of these occupations are allied health occupations such as physical therapy assistants/aides, occupational therapy assistants/aides, and home health aides. These positions are common entry points for a healthcare career given their low education entry requirements. Federal agencies such as the Administration for Children and Families have taken notice of these growing job opportunities in healthcare, funding programs targeting recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and other low-income groups to train for entry-level healthcare occupations.2 Also, the topic of how to move people into jobs requiring less than a bachelors degree in healthcare has been discussed in several forums held by the countrys leading researchers.3 As the U.S. healthcare system seeks to reduce costs, employers are finding new and creative ways to use individuals in low- and middleskilled positions who are less costly to employ.4-9 Questions are emerging about the quality of these positions, especially in settings that rely heavily on low- and middle-skilled occupations, such as long-term care. There is concern about whether the country is building a health system on a weak workforce foundation. A recent report found that despite high demand for long-term care workers, individuals had been exiting long-term care at a high rate and moving into unemployment or out of the labor force altogether; in addition, these individuals had high rates of disability and poverty.10 There is growing apprehension among researchers that greater reliance on a low-skilled workforce without adequate pay may lead to high turnover, which can disrupt continuity of care and contribute to poor quality of care.11-13 Labor economists14 have studied the deficiencies in socioeconomic well-being of workers across occupation skill levels. Less attention has been given to the socioeconomic well-being of individuals working in healthcare, which may be an important contributor to turnover. In this study, we examined socioeconomic well-being, defined as being above the federal poverty level, having health insurance, and not relying on state/federal assistance programs, among individuals working in healthcare. We categorized healthcare workers according to the education requirements of their occupation, which allows us to determine whether socioeconomic well-being varies by skill.

This paper examines effects of the U.S. Immigration Act of 1990 on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) degree completion and labor market outcomes for native-born Americans. The Act increased the in-flow and stock of foreign STEM workers in the U.S., both by increasing green card allotments and by expanding temporary work visas via the H-1B visa program. These policy changes potentially altered the relative desirability of various college majors and occupations for natives. We examine effects of the policy on STEM degree completion, STEM occupational choice, and employment rates separately for black and white males and females. We identify the effects using variation in natives exposure to foreign STEM workers and the geographic dispersion in foreign-born STEM workers in 1980, which precedes the Act and predicts future foreign STEM flows. We find that the Immigration Act changed natives skill investment and utilization in three ways: (1) it pushed black males out of STEM majors; (2) it pushed white male STEM graduates out of STEM occupations; and (3) it pushed white female STEM graduates out of the workforce.

The emergence and transformation of kindergarten in the United States is the quintessential example of the irrepressibility of schooling expansion, the ever-greater institutionalization of education in childrens lives, and the rise in formal educations emphasis on cognitive skills among young children. This article explores the cultural transformation of kindergarten from a separate play-based experience to the first year of formal schooling. This happened all while kindergarten enrollments expanded. Over the course of the twentieth century, parents increasingly opted to enroll their children in formal schooling prior to compulsory attendance requirements, regardless of mothers work status. Instead, enrollment rates are associated with mothers education levels.

While the economic burden of simultaneously caring for young and old family members is widely recognized, it has yet to be accurately measured. Yet, such assessments are relevant both to public policies providing support to family caregivers and to private insurance markets for long-term care. This descriptive study presents a new method to address this problem: the construction of a crosswalk between time-use diaries and other types of surveys using lists of activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) for which assistance is required. Analysis of pooled data from American time use survey 2003–2012 provides some quantitative indicators, but understates the temporal burden of care and fails to distinguish types of care that involve personal interaction from those that do not. A crosswalk of time-use survey categories with the list-based approach typically applied in public health surveys clearly demonstrates the importance of clear definitions and also offers more precise measures. Depending on how sandwich caregiving was defined, the temporal burden for caregiving ranged from 11.2 to 60 h per week, clustering at around 20 h per week for most cases. This result demonstrates the magnitude of sandwich care demands and also underscores the need for improved care survey design. As shown in this study, such efforts should take into account the implications of disaggregating data by gender and age, and definitional variations that characterize existing datasets.

We are among the first to use American time-use data to investigate non-market behavior in gay and lesbian households. We contribute to a literature that has documented a gay disadvantage and lesbian advantage in the labor market. Many have proposed that this pattern reflects, relative to their heterosexual counterparts, higher levels of household labor among gay men and lower levels of household labor among lesbian women. Results show that gay men, parents in particular, spend more time in household production than heterosexual men. We find evidence of different time-use patterns for lesbians, but they are driven by characteristics not sexual orientation. These results also contribute to the economics of the household showing that time use in same-sex households with weaker gender constructs does not conform to the predictions of models that highlight comparative advantage as a source of specialization.

Fragile by Design by Charles W. Calomiris and Stephen H. Haber introduces a framework for understanding financial crises and credit abundance with politics at its center. Using the historical experiences of five nations to illustrate, the authors propose that democracies such as the United States and Canada can have stable banks and ample credit so long as populist forces do not dominate the policy agenda, and that strong autocratic states such as Mexico can also achieve stability at the cost of restricting credit. Weak autocracies, such as Brazil over much of its history, often require inflationary finance and suffer from the banking fragility that comes with it. The authors identify populist ideologies and related policy decisions (such as unit banking, deposit insurance, and the Community Reinvestment Act) as underlying causes of banking instability in the United States as typified by the recent subprime crisis. Canada, in contrast, by holding populist forces in check through calculated political choices, remains crisis-free.

Objective: The goal of this study was to explore how veterans in healthcare occupations compare to their civilian counterparts. Data/Setting: We used the 2011-2013 American Community Survey (ACS), which is a household survey conducted annually by the U.S. Census Bureau. We restricted our analysis to the non-institutionalized population age 18 to 75 years old living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. We used pre-defined stratified sample probability weights to make the sample nationally representative and identified individuals working in healthcare occupations as classified by four-digit Census occupation codes. Design/Methods: Sociodemographic characteristics of the study population were compared by veteran status and gender, and unpaired two sample t-tests were conducted to determine significant differences across mean characteristics by gender and by veteran status. Pearsons chi-squared test was used to determine significant differences in proportions across veteran status within gender. Statistical significance was determined at p<0.001. Results: Healthcare from 2011 to 2013 was a female-dominated field among non-veterans, (79.7% female) but among veterans, the gender distribution was nearly reversed (32.0% female). Generally, veterans had a lower percentage of females in every occupation compared to non-veterans. Among veterans, female veterans working in a healthcare occupation were significantly likely to be younger, not married, working part-time, below the poverty level, and receiving lower average individual earnings than male veterans. Allied health professions such as diagnostic related technologist/technician (e.g., cardiovascular technologist/technician, sonographer, magnetic resonance imaging technologist) were among those most commonly held occupations by veterans across both genders, but with higher frequency among males. Female veterans and non-veterans were more likely to be in lower-skilled occupations like nursing/psychiatric/home health aide, medical assistant, and personal/home care aide compared to their male counterparts. About 40% of veterans under age of 25, either gender, were in low-skilled aide and assistant positions; this was significantly higher than among young non-veterans. Conclusions: Given that healthcare occupations are in high demand for the foreseeable future and veterans are currently underrepresented in the field, young veterans struggling to find employment should be encouraged to consider opportunities in healthcare. Reflective of the larger veteran population, veterans working in healthcare were largely an older male population that is relatively well-educated and working in highly skilled occupations. Young veterans, on the other hand, were more likely to be in assistive entry-level occupations regardless of gender. The nations challenge is to ensure that veterans and nonveterans who enter healthcare occupations enter at the highest level their education and training supports, and that they have trajectories that encourage career advancement and upward mobility. More work is needed to understand the underlying factors (e.g., military training and experience, financial support for education from the GI bill) that led male veterans to more highly skilled and higher-paying occupations in healthcare.

Social factors have been shown to create differential burden of influenza across different geographic areas. We explored the relationship between potential aggregate-level social determinants and mortality during the 1918 influenza pandemic in Chicago using a historical dataset of 7,971 influenza and pneumonia deaths. Census tract-level social factors, including rates of illiteracy, homeownership, population, and unemployment, were assessed as predictors of pandemic mortality in Chicago. Poisson models fit with generalized estimating equations (GEEs) were used to estimate the association between social factors and the risk of influenza and pneumonia mortality. The Poisson model showed that influenza and pneumonia mortality increased, on average, by 32.2% for every 10% increase in illiteracy rate adjusted for population density, homeownership, unemployment, and age. We also found a significant association between transmissibility and population density, illiteracy, and unemployment but not homeownership. Lastly, analysis of the point locations of reported influenza and pneumonia deaths revealed fine-scale spatiotemporal clustering. This study shows that living in census tracts with higher illiteracy rates increased the risk of influenza and pneumonia mortality during the 1918 influenza pandemic in Chicago. Our observation that disparities in structural determinants of neighborhood-level health lead to disparities in influenza incidence in this pandemic suggests that disparities and their determinants should remain targets of research and control in future pandemics.

When scholars speak of situating Jews within the American racial landscape, typically, they are speaking metaphorically. How have Jews seen themselves? How have they been perceived others?1 I offer here an alternative, more literal approach to understanding the nexus of Jews, race, and place: How have Jews situated themselves in relationship to whites with respect to where they choose to live? Even though Jewish residential choices have been to some extent constrained both by their economic resources and restrictive covenants that excluded them, every major Jewish community has seen a succession of neighborhoods where Jews have been concentrated. Even if some neighborhoods might have been closed to Jews over the course of the twentieth century, Jews have made choices among neighborhoods to which they did have access. How have Jews chosen where to live? This is not a simple question to answer because Jews do not appear to behave like white ethnics, even though sociological theory has assumed that they ought to. Indeed, when the assumption of Jewish whiteness is lifted, Jewish residential patterns, especially in their Sunbelt variety, appear most similar to those of nonwhite ethnics generally, and to the Asian-American ethnoburb in particular.

Researchers must often estimate income inequality using data that give only the number of cases (e.g., families or households) whose incomes fall in "bins" such as 0−9,999,10,000-14,999,..., $200,000+. We find that popular methods for estimating inequality from binned incomes are not robust in small samples, where popular methods can produce infinite, undefined, or arbitrarily large estimates. To solve these and other problems, we develop two improved estimators: the robust Pareto midpoint estimator (RPME) and the multimodel generalized beta estimator (MGBE). In a broad evaluation using US national, state, and county data from 1970 to 2009, we find that both estimators produce very good estimates of the mean and Gini, but less accurate estimates of the Theil and mean log deviation. Neither estimator is uniformly more accurate, but the RPME is much faster, which may be a consideration when many estimates must be obtained from many datasets. We have made the methods available as the rpme and mgbe commands for Stata and the binequality package for R.

Access to quality, affordable child care is critical for American working families, and it is a major focus of efforts to bring about more family-friendly workplaces.1 In this brief, we analyze families’ child care expenses and identify, among families with young children (under age 6) who pay for child care, the share that are “cost burdened,” defined here as spending more than 10 percent of their gross income on child care.2,3 Using data from the 2012–2016 Current Population Survey, we present our findings by number of children; age of youngest child; parental characteristics; family income measures; and U.S. region, metropolitan status, and state. Unless otherwise noted, families include only those with children under age 6 who had any child care costs in the previous year

As a stakeholder in Salem City, PRI is conscientious of how the development of their 101.44 acre lot can play a role in the city’s development. PRI has asked the University of Utah’s Metropolitan Research Center to evaluate Salem’s current housing market, estimate population and households projections, and develop alternative land use scenarios to meet the city’s needs. Each scenario is evaluated by its potential impacts (housing, costs, VMT, etc.). This report expresses these analyses and results in order to start a dialogue between PRI and Salem City . . .

This paper uses a new dataset on state compulsory attendance, continuation school, and child labor laws with the 1940 full count Census of Population to estimate the returns to schooling for native-born white men in the 1885-1912 birth cohorts. IV estimates of returns to schooling range from 0.064 to 0.079. Quantile IV estimates show that the returns to schooling were largest for the lowest quantiles, and were generally monotonically decreasing for higher quantiles. These findings suggest that early schooling laws may have contributed to the Great Compression by increasing education levels for white men at the bottom of the distribution.