Washington, DC – The Bipartisan Policy Center projects that the debt limit “X Date” will most likely arrive between mid-October and mid-November. This forecast narrows BPC’s earlier projection range of fall 2021.

“Given the current pace of federal spending and revenues, we are reasonably confident that the X Date won’t arrive before the start of the fiscal year, or even the week or so following,” said Shai Akabas, BPC director of economic policy. “But the train could go off the rails shortly thereafter, and just because Congress has a bit more breathing room than previously expected, doesn’t mean lawmakers need to use it.”

While current data indicate the X Date is unlikely to fall outside of BPC’s range, the heightened uncertainty around federal cash flows this year could lead to surprise developments. For example, September quarterly tax revenues and the magnitude of upcoming federal payments towards pandemic relief efforts, such as to the Small...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Richard Frank has been appointed director of the USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Health Policy and will be a senior fellow in Economic Studies at the Brookings Institution, beginning September 13, 2021. Frank succeeds Paul Ginsburg, who will continue his work for the USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Health Policy as a nonresident senior fellow.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to have Richard joining Brookings as the Director of the Schaeffer Initiative,” said Vice President and Director of Economic Studies Stephanie Aaronson. “His combination of rigorous research skills and senior policy experience makes him the perfect person to lead the Initiative and build on its record of high impact policy research. Richard also brings expertise in the areas of mental health and drug abuse, critical elements of the health crisis the U.S. faces today, particularly in low-income communities where the risk factors are higher.”

Frank joins...

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President Biden is facing a big decision, and deep divides among his allies. Should he reappoint Jerome Powell to lead the Federal Reserve when Mr. Powell’s term ends early next year, or select a replacement who is more fully aligned with the Democratic policy agenda?

Pro-Powell forces argue that he has proved exceptionally committed to generating a robust job market that will lead to better conditions for American workers. Those who argue against reappointment say that he has been too soft a regulator of banks and other financial institutions, and that he is insufficiently committed to using the Fed’s powers to combat climate change.

But there is a more fundamental question for President Biden: What is his theory of how change happens?

WASHINGTON—Senior Senate Republicans on Monday threatened to indefinitely hold up the nominations of five top Treasury Department officials if the Biden administration doesn’t blacklist the firm managing Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.

Sen. Pat Toomey (R., Pa.) and Ted Cruz (R., Texas) said they are prepared to approve the nominations, including two national security posts that oversee sanctions and counterterror finance, if the Treasury Department blacklists Russia-owned Nord Stream 2 AG.

Washington, D.C. — The Brookings Institution is proud to announce the appointment of the third class of David M. Rubenstein Fellows. These two-year fellowships have been awarded to 10 outstanding early- and mid-career scholars who will be placed across five research programs at the Brookings Institution to study the most important local, national, and global policy issues of our time.

The Rubenstein Fellowship program, originally announced in 2017, is supported by a generous gift from Brookings Trustee David M. Rubenstein, co-founder and co-chairman of The Carlyle Group, and is part of Brookings’s commitment to advancing diversity in its scholarly community. The program gives these brilliant scholars the invaluable gift of time and flexibility to think deeply, connect intentionally, and produce meaningful work that makes a difference. Their diverse backgrounds and experiences contribute dynamic new dimensions to the Brookings community and nurture a pipeline...

Because of the pandemic, millions of lost jobs in the U.S. are not filled yet. While there are reports of labor shortages in many sectors, a large percentage of workers say they are looking for a new job. For some without a bachelor's degree, job prospects were bleak even before the pandemic. As part of our "Work Shift" series, Paul Solman looks at a program that is offering better opportunities.

WASHINGTON—Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler named an outspoken investor-protection advocate to his inner circle of advisers Wednesday, the latest sign he is gearing up to take a more adversarial approach toward Wall Street.

Mr. Gensler appointed Barbara Roper, longtime director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America, to serve as a senior adviser focused on policy issues, broker-dealer oversight, investment-adviser oversight and examinations.

“Barb is a champion for investors and will provide invaluable counsel on behalf of the American public,” Mr. Gensler said in a statement. He said he has worked with Ms. Roper on landmark Wall Street reform projects dating back to the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley overhaul of public-company accounting rules, as well as the Dodd-Frank Act passed in 2010 following the global financial crisis. “I’m thrilled to collaborate with her again at the SEC.”

A prolific writer of comment...

The investment company Nuveen has spent $120 million renovating its office tower at 730 Third Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, overhauling the lobby, devoting the second floor to amenities and refurbishing a 22nd-floor terrace.

And the finishing touch? Two beehives on a seventh-floor terrace.

Following the latest trend in office perks, Nuveen hired a beekeeper to teach tenants about their tiny new neighbors and harvest honey for them to take home.

“In conversations with tenants, I get more questions about that than anything else,” said Brian Wallick, Nuveen’s director of New York office and life science investments.

Office workers who were sent home during pandemic lockdowns often sought refuge in nature, tending to houseplants, setting up bird feeders and sitting outdoors with their laptops. Now, as companies try to coax skittish employees back to the office and building owners compete for tenants when vacancy rates are soaring, many have hit on the idea of...

This article has been prepared for the Annual Review of Economics. When citing this paper, please use the following: Grossman G, Oberfield E. 2022. The Elusive Explanation for the Declining Labor Share. Annu. Rev. Econ. 14: Submitted. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-economics-080921-103046. We are grateful to Hank Farber, Devesh Raval and Richard Rogerson for very helpful comments on a previous draft of this review and to Sean Zhang and especially Carlos Burga for excellent research assistance. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Bureau of Economic Research.