Doctoral Dissertation Research in Economics: State and Local Spending on Poverty Relief in the United States: 1900-1930

经济学博士论文研究：美国州和地方的扶贫支出：1900-1930

• 批准号: 0962598
• 负责人: Price Fishback
• 金额: $ 1万
• 依托单位: University of Arizona
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-05-01 至 2012-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0962598&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Economics; State

This project investigates the safety net for the poor in the United States prior to the New Deal. During the time period between 1900 and 1930, America's system of poverty relief relied on a patchwork of different agencies and nonprofit organizations. Private nonprofits were the most important provider of relief followed by local governments. These agencies provided temporary housing, old age assistance, inexpensive child care, and reduced price drugs. State governments provided relief as well; however, it was mostly for the poor that needed permanent help. There is a common perception, even among many social scholars, that there was little or no safety net for the poor in America prior to the New Deal. This perception stems from the lack of data collected by the federal government on the subject. Investigators need to collect individual state records to truly tell the story of how the United States developed poverty programs. Constructing a data set of state, local, and private records will help test many economic theories including the crowding out of private donations by public expenditures. During this time period there was a significant shift in government finance of poor relief. The income tax was legalized in 1913 followed by tax code changes that allowed charitable donations to be tax deductible in 1919. Public money was rarely used for direct donations to the nonprofit sector allowing for an equilibrium that cannot be found today. Historical data will also provide a better understanding of the growth of the public sector.There is significant variation among states on how they dealt with poverty relief. The scientific charity movement that swept across the United States during the early part of the 20th century attacked government spending as harmful. The movement's literature argued that careful assistance by private institutions was the only way to combat poverty. During this time the government focused on funding hospitals, insane asylums, reform schools, and almshouses. After 1910 states started providing public support to the poor in their homes through mothers' pensions for widows with children and aid to the blind. This is a large shift in the public's perception of how to allocate funds to the poor. After 1920 there was a sudden increase in government expenditures for the poor. However, with this increase in the size of the government came an increase in private expenditures as well. Documents used to construct this data set come from the scientific charity movement and the State Boards of Charities. Most of these agencies were established in the Northeast during the 1880s followed by adoption from other states during the early 1900s. The IRS will also be used to find financial tax records of private institutions when the state does not publish them in their report. Detailed information about each state will show a breakdown in the types of relief and institutions that provide them.This time period in America's past is important as Social Security, Medicare, and TANF all start in local forms before they grow into national programs. States differed on their funding levels that continue today. A comparison between America's system and the more government funded universal European system is also possible when researchers take into account private spending.

该项目在新交易之前调查了美国穷人的安全网。 在1900年至1930年之间，美国的贫困救济体系依赖于不同机构和非营利组织的拼凑而成。 私人非营利组织是最重要的救济提供者，其次是地方政府。 这些机构提供了临时住房，老年援助，廉价的儿童保育和价格降低的药品。 州政府也提供了救济；但是，主要需要永久帮助的穷人。 即使在许多社会学者中，也有一种普遍的看法，即在新交易之前，美国穷人几乎没有安全网。 这种看法源于联邦政府对该主题收集的数据。 调查人员需要收集各个国家记录，以真正讲述美国如何制定贫困计划的故事。 构建州，地方和私人记录的数据集将有助于测试许多经济理论，包括公共支出私人捐款的拥挤。 在此期间，政府救济局的融资发生了重大转变。 所得税在1913年合法化，随后进行了税法变更，允许慈善捐款在1919年免税。公共资金很少用于直接向非营利部门的直接捐款，允许在今天无法找到平衡。 历史数据还将更好地了解公共部门的增长。各州之间在如何处理贫困方面存在重大差异。 在20世纪初期，席卷整个美国的科学慈善运动袭击了政府的支出是有害的。 该运动的文献认为，私人机构的认真援助是消除贫困的唯一方法。 在此期间，政府专注于资助医院，疯狂的庇护所，改革学校和施舍。 1910年之后，各州开始通过母亲的寡妇养育儿童的寡妇养老金，为穷人提供公众支持，并为盲人提供帮助。 这是公众对如何将资金分配给穷人的看法的重大转变。 1920年后，政府支出突然增加了穷人的支出。 但是，随着政府规模的增加，私人支出也增加了。 用于构建此数据集的文件来自科学慈善机构和国家慈善机构。 这些机构中的大多数是在1880年代在东北建立的，随后在1900年代初从其他州收养。 美国国税局还将在州未在其报告中发布私人机构的财务税记录。 有关每个州的详细信息将显示出提供它们的救济和机构类型的细分。美国过去的这个时期很重要，因为社会保障，医疗保险和TANF都以当地形式开始，然后才成长为国家计划。 各州在今天持续的资金水平上有所不同。 当研究人员考虑到私人支出时，美国制度与政府更多资助的欧洲普遍体系之间的比较也可以进行比较。