Reforming America’s regressive asset-building subsidies would help to address increasing wealth inequalities

Wealth inequality in the United States increased over the last several decades and worsened as a result of the Great Recession, which reduced the average wealth of families by nearly 30 percent. In new research, Signe-Mary McKernan and Caroline Ratcliffe, with Gene Steuerle and Sisi Zhang, measure disparities in wealth accumulation and loss. They argue that social welfare and tax policies pay too little attention to wealth building and mobility relative to consumption and income. Reforming America’s regressive asset-building policies would help