Martha N. Ozawa

The Earned Income Tax Credit: Its Effect and Its Significance

Initially a program to relieve the burdens of the social security tax on low-income taxpayers, the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is rapidly becoming a major income support program for the working poor and their families. This article discusses the effects of the EITC on the income status and work incentives of welfare families in New York City and Texas, assesses the distributive effect of the EITC, and investigates the extent to which the EITC helps welfare families escape poverty through work. It then places the EITC in a broader policy perspective, describing its ripple effects on this countrys treatment of the working poor versus the nonworking poor, support of children, and attempts to cope with the increasing disparity in the incomes of high-wage and low-wage workers.

Child Welfare Programs in Japan

This article attempts to explain that the healthy development of Japanese children is due, in part, to the types of child welfare programs that Japan has developed since World War II. With this in mind, the article discusses the economic and social changes that have shaped the development of child welfare programs in Japan, describes the types of income maintenance and social service programs provided to Japanese children, and describes the financing and administrative structure of these programs. The article analyzes the basic characteristics of these programs and concludes that the Japanese take an investment strategy in providing for children through these programs.

Distributive Effects of Social Security and Pension Benefits

As the public debates the danger of the increasing federal deficit, social security is once again receiving public attention. Should the government de-emphasize social security and emphasize employer-provided pensions as a vehicle for providing retirement income? Before policymakers face this question, it is important to evaluate the role of these programs in shaping the level and the distribution of income among the retired. This article presents findings from a study based on the 1982 New Beneficiary Survey. The study found that, compared with employer-provided pension benefits, social security benefits not only assure a relatively higher level of income to economically disadvantaged demographic groups of recent retirees but also are significantly more effective in equalizing income distribution among a recent cohort of retirees. Policy implications are drawn from the studys findings.

Social Security Reform in Japan

The United States is not alone in trying to make its social security system financially viable. Japans social security program is also facing a potential crisis. Its financial difficulties can be measured by the fact that it has the fastest growing proportion of elderly in the world. The Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare recently proposed a comprehensive plan to reform the nations social security system. This article discusses problems surrounding that system, briefly presents the double-decker plan recommended by the ministry, and discusses and evaluates some issues especially relevant to the United States.

Distributive Effects of Survivors Insurance Benefits and Public Assistance

This study investigates the degree to which Survivors Insurance (SI) benefits and public assistance payments reduce poverty rates and equalize income distribution among survivor families on social security. The findings indicate that SI benefits equalize income distribution, but are more effective in reducing the poverty rates of relatively well-off poor families. Public assistance payments play a minor role in further equalizing income distribution. The antipoverty effect of public assistance, in favor of the relatively worse-off, only slightly counteracts the antipoverty effect of SI benefits.