EPI in the news

• Our view: Tricks, treats and your ballot

  Yet the Economic Policy Institute estimates La Plata County taxpayers’ share of federal deportation spending through the end of Trump’s term at $48.8…[paywall].

  The Durango Herald (CO) | November 2, 2026
• The wealthy in Colorado threaten to flee a proposed 8.4% tax — but research on millions of high earners suggests most will stay right where they are

  Supporters argue the higher rates on top earners would help pay for services the state needs. The Economic Policy Institute estimates Amendment 87 would bring in about $2 billion a year for schools, health care and child care. It also estimates about 97% of taxpayers would pay less or see no change.

  MoneyWise | November 2, 2026
• The DEI Watchlist Is the Latest Weapon in America’s War on Black Progress

  We’ve already told you about the hundreds of thousands of Black federal employees who were laid off during President Trump’s first year back in office. Now, the Black unemployment rate continues to climb to its fastest rate since April 2020, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

  The Root | November 2, 2026
• The Trump administration wants to give married parents money to stay at home. Will it be enough?

  “Families of all compositions need help right now. All families do. We should not pit families against each other,” said Chandra Childers, a senior policy and economic analyst at the Economic Policy Institute.

  …

  The White House’s plan, by reallocating federal funds from the Department of Health and Human Services that have typically gone to low-income, single-parent families, could actually making childcare even more expensive or less available, Childers said.

  “The minute you start draining resources that go into funding this childcare pool, then rates have to rise on other families, some of whom may already be stretching to make it as it is,” she said.

  The Guardian | November 2, 2026
• ‘It’s the inflation, stupid’: US voters sour on the economy despite economic growth

  In an article published in September in the Economic Policy Institute, Heidi Shierholz and Josh Bivens argue that “the U.S. economy is the richest in the world, yet the gap between what it could deliver to working families versus what it actually delivers is maddening.”

  “This gap is driven by inequality,” the article continues. “Average incomes can only rise faster than incomes at the middle if some groups — the ultra-rich in this case — see strongly above-average growth.”

  El Pais | November 2, 2026
• Calculating the costs of mass deportations in Colorado

  Nationally, it’s enough to cover the cost of medical care for 5 million veterans and a host of other programs, according to a new calculator created by the nonpartisan think tank the Economic Policy Institute.

  Ben Zipperer, senior economist at the institute, said the cost of the Trump administration’s mass deportation program could pay for what many American voters see as priorities.

  “Instead of funding mass deportations, we could pay for health insurance for nearly 12 million people or fund nearly 10 million public housing units or have paid parental leave for 6 million parents. Instead, we’re demonizing immigrants,” Zipperer outlined.

  Public News Service | November 2, 2026
• New Census Data Reveals Median Household Income by State: See Where Yours Ranks

  D.C. had the highest median income in 2025 and the largest decrease in typical earnings, according to the Economic Policy Institute’s analysis of the data. Typical household income in the district has fallen an inflation-adjusted 6% since 2019, EPI said.

  The most recent leg of that decline reflects widespread cuts to the federal workforce under President Donald Trump, according to David Cooper, EPI’s director of state policy research.

  …

  States where a large share of adults have college degrees also tend to have high median incomes, Cooper said. In D.C., 65% of residents 25 or older have at least a bachelor’s degree, the highest share in the country. The five states with the highest shares of college-educated adults all had median incomes near or above $100,000, Investopedia found.

  Investopedia | November 2, 2026

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