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Jesse Rothstein

@jrothst.bsky.social

Economist, public policy wonk, professor at UC Berkeley, faculty director of California Policy Lab & Center for Studies in Higher Education

276 Posts20688 Follower1122 Folgt
Jesse Rothstein@jrothst.bsky.social · 3w ago

I just finished reading “Seeing Like a State.” It argues that “high modernism” (Brasilia, soviet collectivization, Tanzanian forced villagization) failed because it put complex humanity into overly-simple schema. I think it has interesting things to say about AI’s impact on the labor market. 🧵

Joey Fishkin@fishkin.bsky.social · 3w ago

The @nytimes.com is out with a long editorial urging the UC Regents to end the UC's test-blind policy in undergraduate admissions. The NYT completely fails to address, or mention, the elephant in the room: the relentless, vexatious litigation the UC already faces over supposed affirmative action:

Opinion | A Great University Undermines Its Mission (Gift Article)

Under the test-blind policy, more students are thrown into classes for which they are unprepared.

nytimes.com

The California Policy Lab@capolicylab.bsky.social · 3mo ago

We're excited to share new research showing community college students who receive #CalFresh are more likely to stay on track academically and to return for a second year. New working paper from Center for Studies in Higher Education @berkeleycshe.bsky.social + CPL: capolicylab.org/news/calfres...

CalFresh Benefits Help Students Succeed in College, New Study Finds - California Policy Lab

Berkeley, May 4, 2026 – Community college students who receive CalFresh during their first year of college are more likely to stay on track academically and return for a second year, according to a ne...

capolicylab.org

Jesse Rothstein@jrothst.bsky.social · 4mo ago

I'm very proud of this interview in the @oiginstitute.bsky.social magazine. I think it does a good job of capturing what I do and how it all fits together. Stay tuned for the book I mention there - coming next year!

Opportunity & Inclusive Growth Institute@oiginstitute.bsky.social · 4mo ago

“Researchers are taking on projects they might have otherwise passed on, and our government partners get the insights they need to improve programs and policies.” Berkeley econ professor @jrothst.bsky.social on 10 years of the California Policy Lab: https://bit.ly/4mtubyq

Jesse Rothstein
N Sims@copyrightlibn.bsky.social · 5mo ago

So weird: there's more than one scammy memorial site inviting donations or tree-planting in my dad's memory. We are not asking for that, but if people feel moved, donations in lieu of flowers to www.aclu-mn.org, www.aclu.org, or www.eff.org Econ folks, can you help get the word out?

Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2011

The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2011 was awarded jointly to Thomas J. Sargent and Christopher A. Sims "for their empirical research on cause and effect in th...

nobelprize.org

Jesse Rothstein@jrothst.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Good thread and article. One factor it doesn't mention is that survey response rates have fallen a lot. The CPS (households) has gone from near 90% to <70%; the CES (estabs) from 60%+ to 42%; the JOLTS is in the low 30s. That hurts reliability and increases revisions. www.bls.gov/osmr/respons...

Household and establishment survey response rates

Household and establishment survey response rates

bls.gov

Ben Casselman@bencasselman.bsky.social · 5mo ago

I get a lot of questions these days about data from BLS and other agencies. Some of this is about fears of political interference. Some of it is about the reliability of the data, especially in light of recent big revisions. In a story today, I tried to tackle both. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/06/b...

Jesse Rothstein@jrothst.bsky.social · 5mo ago

This is the exact Laffer move: Step 1: You accept in principle of course that there is a revenue maximizing tax rate t*, and further increases beyond that would reduce revenue. Step 2: Let's assume, with 0 evidence, that your proposed t is above t*. Step 3: Ergo, your proposed t is too high.

Jason Furman@jasonfurman.bsky.social · 5mo ago

How much are you willing to reduce spending on poor children to tax billionaires more? A utilitarian would raise taxes on billionaires basically to the revenue maximizing rate. IF you think billionaires are a negative externality then you would go even higher. A 🧵 .