Asset-Based Social Policies / Politiques sociales fondées sur les actifs

To alleviate persistent financial hardship in a segment of the population, traditional government social policies focus on universal or targeted income measures, either direct or through the tax system. A new way of thinking that's gained many converts in the United States and the United Kingdom is an asset-based approach to social policy, where the government encourages low-income individuals and families to save money for their future, or they receive some matching government contributions towards specific types of expenditures, like acquiring a post-secondary education or purchasing a home.

"The Government has received numerous representations from individuals, researchers and businesses that Canada’s tax system should be more conducive to saving. The Government intends to carefully review these representations and to conduct analysis in order to identify possible approaches for future improvements. In particular, the Government will examine whether tax pre-paid savings plans could be a useful and appropriate mechanism to improve the tax treatment of savings and to provide additional savings opportunities for Canadians."
Source:
Investing in a More Productive, Sustainable Economy
(Ch. 5 of The [Federal] Budget Plan 2003)
NOTE: In the fall of 2003, a number of individuals and organizations made presentations and submitted proposals to Finance Canada concerning asset-building social policy options.

Here are just some of the areas where asset-based policies are already in place in Canada:
- retirement (Registered Retirement Savings Plans)
- post-secondary education (Canada Education Savings Grant Program)
- home ownership (various federal and provincial home ownership assistance programs)
- microcredit enterprises (low-or-no interest loans for business startup for people on low income)
- banking services for low-income people
- special treatment of certain types of assets under provincial-territorial welfare programs.

How can asset-based policies help people and families on welfare when, as social advocacy groups continue to insist (and I agree), welfare incomes are abysmally low?
How low? see Welfare Incomes 2005 (PDF file - 1.4MB, 116 pages - August 2006) by the National Council of Welfare

"Matched savings and lifetime savings accounts, Individual Development Accounts and tax advantaged approaches to savings (Registered Development Savings Plans) are all elements of asset development and retention that low income people can use. Income maintenance programs, e.g., welfare, can work hand in glove with asset initiatives to reduce inequality of resources and to improve the lives and security of low income Canadians."
John Stapleton, St. Christopher House (December 9, 2003)

What Works When Works Doesn’t?”
Income Security Strategies For Working-Age Adults (PDF file - 204K, 30 pages)
Project Report
June 24, 2004
"Income Security Strategies for Working-Age Adults (...) explores options for developing practical, responsive and modern strategies for income security for working-age people in Ontario and Canada."
- incl. analysis of the treatment of assets under provincial-territorial welfare programs and, among the the proposed strategies for working-age adults, suggests that assets should be protected and allowed to grow beyond current levels within welfare programs.
Source:
Income Security Strategies for Working Age Adults
[ St. Christopher House ]

Also from St. Christopher House:

From pleasure to terror:
Why unexpected money is a problem for the poor (PDF file - 107K, 5 pages)
January 2004
"The purpose of this commentary is to build support for assets based approaches to poverty reduction such as those proposed by Social Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI) in the context of Learn$ave and St. Christopher House in its Registered Development Savings Plan (RDSP) proposals. It was prepared by John Stapleton, Community Undertaking Social Policy (CUSP) Fellow at St. Christopher House and Massey College.

Welfare Asset Tests

Asset-based policies aren't the magic bullet solution to reduce poverty and welfare dependency and to support efforts towards self-sufficiency in Canada, but they do offer governments a new set of tools to help people on welfare to improve their financial well-being. Welfare programs in a number of Canadian jurisdictions already include special (albeit modest) asset-based features, such as specific exemptions (in the determination of eligibility for welfare) for money set aside in a trust fund for a child's education or pre-paid funeral expenses, and special treatment of assets related to a business.

In order for asset-based social policies to work in Canada's welfare system, provincial-territorial welfare programs would have to modernize (i.e., enhance) their asset exemption policies. The National Council of Welfare's report Welfare Incomes 2003 shows (under "Eligibility") that in the determination of eligibility for welfare, asset exemption levels varied in 2002 from $0 (for young single employable applicants) to $5000 (for people with disabilities). In a number of provinces and territories, asset exemption levels are $1500 for a single person and $2500 for a family - levels that were set in 1975 (and some even before then) for cost-sharing of provincial-territorial welfare costs by the Canada Assistance Plan . If provinces and territories would simply adjust those amounts for inflation from 1975 to 2004, welfare asset exemption levels would be just under $5,500 for a single person and $9,100 for a family. (Converted using the Bank of Canada Inflation Calculator )

Recent examples of progressive welfare policy from Ontario, BC and Alberta:

Education plans safe under welfare change
Savings funds won't have to be liquidated
'It's a dumb rule,' minister says
October 7, 2004
"The Ontario government is scrapping a welfare rule requiring applicants to liquidate their education savings plans, Social Services Minister Sandra Pupatello says. 'It's a dumb rule that works at cross-purposes to what welfare is suppose to be doing for people and their families ... that rule is going to be eliminated,' Pupatello told the Toronto Star yesterday, adding the change should happen before the end of the year."
Source:
The Toronto Star

Related Link:

Design and Implementation of a Program to Help the Poor Save:
The learn$ave Project (PDF file - 2.3MB, 208 pages)
August 2005
"This report is the second to be published on the learn$ave project, a research and demonstration project that provides matching grants to individuals who save for education and training. Written after enrolment in the project had been completed, this report presents a detailed description of the learn$ave design and evaluation strategy and also documents how learn$ave was implemented and who enrolled in the project."
Source:
Social Research and Demonstration Corporation

Home$ave
"(...) Existing government home buyer and tax credit programs are out of reach for low-income earners, and in major cities like Toronto where home prices are so high, there isn’t nearly enough affordable housing to meet the demand. SEDI is piloting a project called that will give low-income Canadians a place to turn. By putting money aside in an Individual Development Account (IDA), participants can build their personal savings and earn a credit for a matching amount. The savings don’t have to be big, as long as they are consistent. Bit by bit, enough money is collected to put a downpayment on a home. SEDI is currently working in partnership with community groups, financial partners and government agencies to get this project started."
More info on Home$ave - April 2002 (small PDF file)

Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC)

learn$ave (SRDC) - "A National Demonstration Project of Individual Development Accounts for Learning"

Early results show low-income Canadians can save for their education
News Release
January 25, 2008
A new report released by SRDC presents the 18-month results of the Individual Development Accounts project learn$ave. The program has so far yielded positive effects on saving and budgeting, as well as participants’ attitudes towards education.

Learning to Save, Saving to Learn: Early Impacts of the learn$ave Individual Development Accounts Project, a new report released by SRDC, presents the 18-month results of learn$ave, a project designed to demonstrate how Individual Development Accounts can encourage low-income adults to save in order to increase their human capital by participating in education or training, or starting a small business.

Download the full report (PDF file - 525K, 115 pages)
January 2008
Download the executive summary (PDF file - 1.9MB, 12 pages)

Find out more about learn$ave
The learn$ave project was conceived and implemented in 2000 by Social and Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI), and is being funded by Human Resources and Social Development Canada. The evaluation of learn$ave is being conducted by SRDC.

Source:
Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC)
SRDC’s two-part mission is to help policy-makers and practitioners identify social policies and programs that improve the well-being of all Canadians, with a special concern for the effects on the disadvantaged, and to raise the standards of evidence that are used in assessing social policies and programs.

Helping People Help Themselves:
An Early Look at learn$ave
by Paul Kingwell, Michael Dowie, Barbara Holler, with Liza Jimenez
May 2004
Complete Report (PDF file - K, 51 pages)
"This report presents preliminary observations from the learn$ave project. It is the first published report about the project, which has now completed its recruitment phase with 4,827 people enrolled at 10 sites across Canada. The report covers recruitment methods and results up to mid-2003, six months prior to the end of the recruitment period. It presents a profile of participants and compares it with a profile of the eligible population. The early savings activities of participants are presented along with early indications of the extent to which participants have spent both their savings and the matched credits provided through project funding. The report also describes participants’ own views of their learn$ave experiences."

learn$ave Project Update - May 2004

Helping People Help Themselves:
An Early Look at learn$ave
by Paul Kingwell, Michael Dowie, Barbara Holler, with Liza Jimenez
May 2004
Full Report (PDF file - 407K, 51 pages)
"This report presents preliminary observations from the learn$ave project. It is the first published report about the project, which has now completed its recruitment phase with 4,827 people enrolled at 10 sites across Canada. The report covers recruitment methods and results up to mid-2003, six months prior to the end of the recruitment period. It presents a profile of participants and compares it with a profile of the eligible population. The early savings activities of participants are presented along with early indications of the extent to which participants have spent both their savings and the matched credits provided through project funding. The report also describes participants’ own views of their learn$ave experiences."

Version française :
Aider les gens à s’aider eux-mêmes : Un aperçu préliminaire de $avoir en banque
[ Projet $avoir en banque ]

Registered Development Savings Plans

Punished for their providence (PDF file - 131K, 2 pages)
Ontario non-governmental organization proposing a new tax-sheltered savings plan for low income households
Dec. 3, 2003
Carol Goar
Toronto Star
The proposal, called Registered Development Savings Plan, "...would give poor people a chance to put money into a tax-sheltered account, without losing their eligibility for welfare or incurring financial penalties if they withdrew funds for education, training, medical expenses, starting a business or moving into a new home. It would give families trying to move from welfare to self-sufficiency an economic cushion. Research in the United States has shown that households with savings stand a much better chance of breaking the dependency cycle than those without. Most fundamentally, it would give low-income Canadians the same incentive to invest in their own future as other Canadians."

RRSP/RESPs - to buy or not to buy?

By Ellen Roseman of The Toronto Star :

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Low-income parents face RESP barriers
March 27, 2004
Ellen Roseman
"Registered education savings plans will become more popular as a result of new budget measures announced this week. Ottawa plans to help low-income families save for children's college or university by giving grants of up to $2,000. And the existing RESP top-ups will be enhanced. But some low-income parents face barriers that prevent them from saving..."

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Answers to some taxing questions
March 3, 2004

"(...) In a column on Feb. 18 [see below], I talked about how some people — specifically, low-income retirees with RRSP savings of $100,000 or less and no employer pension plan — might be better off taking money out of the plan before age 65. This would be a way to protect income-tested benefits, such as the guaranteed income supplement, from being taxed back because of RRSP withdrawals after they retire. In response to the many questions I received, I'm devoting today's column to a more detailed explanation of how the tax and benefits system works."
.....
"Households whose retirement savings are less than $100,000 (excluding CPP and QPP entitlements) are likely to be GIS recipients. And much, if not all, of the proceeds of their savings will be lost to taxes and the clawback of income-tested benefits."
.....
- includes info about:
--- the effect of RRSPs on entitlement to the Guaranteed income supplement (GIS) under the federal Old Age Security program
--- how retirement income is treated under the personal income tax system
--- why "the GIS nullifies the advantages of RRSPs" for people with lower incomes
--- solution: tax-prepaid savings plans
--- where to obtain more info
Source:

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Cashing out RRSP might make sense
February 18, 2004
Ellen Roseman
"If you believe the ads, every Canadian who is eligible to contribute to an RRSP should do so ASAP. It's your patriotic duty to put the maximum allowed into your registered retirement savings plan each year. Don't fall for the propaganda.
Not everyone should contribute every year. Paying off high-interest debt might be a higher priority. Moreover, many lower-income Canadians who do make RRSP contributions should consider cashing out before they turn 65. By leaving their money in the plan, they could be subject to government clawbacks of social benefits such as the guaranteed income supplement or GIS, prescription drug subsidies, meals on wheels and home care."

Remedy for a Failure - A new tax scheme could help those trapped in low-income jobs or stuck on welfare
Maclean's Magazine - March 15 (2004) Issue
Mary Janigan
"(...) A novel notion is generating plenty of buzz in Ottawa's pre-budget backrooms: registered development savings plans (RDSPs). The idea is simple: allow low-income workers to put aside money in a special account generating tax-free interest; in a crunch, savers could tap those funds without tax penalty for specified purposes such as retraining and, if the provinces agree, without loss of welfare benefits. If they don't use the money, they could tap it in their old age -- without loss of public pension benefits. 'This is a very practical, concrete and fresh way to modernize our income security system,' says St. Christopher CEO Susan Pigott.(...) RDSPs would need time and some money. But they have caught the fancy of politicians and bureaucrats. So watch for them, if not in the March 23 budget, then perhaps in the next one. It could be the social win of the decade."
Source:
Maclean's Magazine

Presentation to the Standing Committee on Finance (PDF file - 150K, 1 page)
by Susan Pigott and John Stapleton
St. Christopher House
November 6, 2003

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Click on the link above to read the text of the oral presentation to the Committee; click on the link below to read the detailed paper that was submitted by St. Chris House for consideration by the Committee.
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Registered Development Savings Plan (RDSP) : A Proposal for a Tax Prepaid Savings Plan
Exempt from Welfare Restrictions on Assets and Income (PDF file - 319K, 26 pages)
- Pre-Budget Submission to the House of Commons Committee on Finance

RDSP Questions and Answers (PDF file - 75K, 3 pages)

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The Key to Tackling Child Poverty:
Income Supports to Meet Their Needs and Assets to Support Their Future
Caledon Commentary
By Jennifer Robson-Haddow
March 2004
"This paper discusses child poverty in Canada in terms of access to savings and assets, as well as income and public services. Middle- and upper-income families have incentives to set aside funds for their child’s future while low-income families are penalized for doing so through welfare needs tests. What’s needed now is a targeted, well-conceived plan for delivering meaningful asset-building opportunities to low-income parents. This paper outlines some of the key features of such a plan, noting progress made in the 2004 federal Budget."
Complete paper (PDF file - 43K, 5 pages)
Related Link:
Social and Enterprise Development Innovations

Asset-Based Social Policies – A "New Idea" Whose Time Has Come?
Andrew Jackson
March 2004
"Asset-building programs invite low-income citizens to participate in forced savings plans by matching their contributions with funds from financial institutions. These programs have enjoyed wide popularity in Canada, the US and the UK over the past few years. Senior economist with the Canadian Labour Congress, Andrew Jackson, questions the significance and long-term benefit of these programs and their possible influence on the development of social policy in Canada."
Complete report (PDF file - 42K, 5 pages)

New Ingredients for the Fiscal Pie
December 2003
Sherri Torjman
"...argues the need for exploring possible methods of expanding the ‘fiscal pie.’ It explores one possible model put forward by PLAN (Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network), a group of parents of children with severe disabilities. The group proposes a combination of private savings and public spending to help develop caring communities. (...) The proposal represents one idea in a range of possible savings and investment mechanisms to expand the fiscal pie – a direction which we should be debating seriously as a nation."
Complete report (PDF file - 19K, 3 pages)

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Education investment of $500 for each child born in 2005 or later - Alberta
News Release
February 17, 2004
"Babies born in Alberta in 2005 or later will benefit from a $500 investment by the Alberta government into individual education savings plans. The Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan Act, which is the first bill introduced in the spring sitting, sets the stage for a new program that will encourage parents to open a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) for their child with a $500 grant from the government."

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Asset Based Community Development (ABCD)…
It's Not Business As Usual
February 25, 2004 (7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
Ottawa Congress Centre
"An opportunity for policy-makers, private sector representatives and CED and ABCD practitioners to meet and share ideas and skills. A trade-show will showcase socially responsible businesses, CED and ABCD ventures."
- incl. online registration

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Social Capital Partners (Toronto)
"Social Capital Partners will invest in revenue generating social enterprises that employ populations outside the economic mainstream in Canada. The goal of these social enterprises will be to acquire scale, to eventually exist without external funding, and to create improved social outcomes and financial self-sufficiency for the populations they employ. SCP will be a catalyst for encouraging other creative approaches in the sector aimed at improving social outcomes through the use of innovative funding mechanisms."
- incl. links to : Who We Are - Financing Available - Our Portfolio Organizations - How We Work With Social Entrepreneurs - Measuring Success - Media Box - What We've Learned - Relevant Resources - Acknowledgements - Contact Us

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Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA)
"The Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA) is a national umbrella organization representing co-operatives and credit unions. We are a not-for-profit co-operative owned by our members. (...) Our mission is to promote the growth and development of the co-operative sector for the economic and social betterment of communities and people in Canada and internationally."

Building Community Assets - CCA project
"In 2002, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Co-operatives Secretariat partnered with CCA under the Voluntary Sector Initiative's Sectoral Involvement in Departmental Policy Development program on an exciting initiative called Building Community Assets-the Co-operative Advantage. In the first year of this two-year project, a steering committee was struck, a literature review was conducted and case studies developed, all building towards the development of a policy framework for using the co-op model in low income communities [bolding added]. A series of regional workshops are being held across Canada during the fall of 2003 to refine the policy framework, disseminate project learnings and support the development of regional networks."

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Two days, two reports, two very different worlds
June 29, 2007
The World Wealth Report 2007 released on Wednesday by Merrill Lynch and Capgemini reports that the very rich (so-called high net worth individuals – HNWI) are getting even richer. And the forecast is the extremely wealthy are going to get even richer due to their dominance of global capital markets, especially commercial real estate and real estate investment trusts. Meanwhile, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released a detailed research report on Thursday called Rising Profit Shares, Falling Wage Shares which shows that real hourly wages for workers (the people that do things, rather than own things) “have been stagnant for 30 years running”.The two studies make fascinating reading, when set side-by-side...
Source:
The Wellesley Institute Blog
[ The Wellesley Institute ]

Canadian workers’ paycheques in 30-year holding pattern : Study
Press Release
June 28, 2007
OTTAWA – Canadians are working harder and smarter, contributing to a growing economy, but their paycheques have been stagnant for the past 30 years, says a new study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

www.GrowingGap.ca
GrowingGap.ca is a project of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
"(...)What does the growing gap look like? In 2004, the richest 10% of families raising children earned 82 times more than the poorest 10% -- almost triple the ratio of 1976, when they earned 31 times more. In after-tax terms the gap is at a 30-year high"

Merrill Lynch and Capgemini Release
11th Annual World Wealth Report (PDF file - 55K, 4 pages)
Press Release
27 June 2007
New York, June 27 – Driven by a strong global economy, the wealth of the world’s high net worth individuals (HNWIs1) increased 11.4 percent to US$37.2 trillion in 2006, according to the 11th annual World Wealth Report, released today by Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) and Capgemini.

World Wealth Report page
- incl. links to : * Fast Breaking Headlines * World Wealth Report Overview * State of the World's Wealth * HNWI Asset Allocation * Spotlight - New Service Model for HNW Clients * Regional Facts * About the World Wealth Report * Capgemini Wealth Management Offerings * Merrill Lynch Global Private Client * WWR Press Releases * WWR Archive * more...

The Luxembourg Income Study
NEWSLETTER
Volume 17 Number 1 Winter 2007 (PDF file - 225K, 12 pages)
February 2007
Table of contents:
Director’s Column * New Staff * 2006/2007 LIS Summer Workshops * Belgian Workshop Summary * 2006 Visiting Scholars * Update on the Luxembourg Wealth Study * 2006 Staff Presentations & Meetings * Upcoming Local Workshops * Local Advisory Board Meeting Update * Grants for Visiting Scholars * Call for Papers * New Working Papers * In the Press/ Where They’ve Turned Up * Staff Directory
[ Earlier issues of the newsletter - links to 13 issues back to December 1998]

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The World Distribution of Household Wealth:
Pioneering Study Shows Richest Two Percent Own Half World Wealth (PDF file - 252K, 14 pages)
Press Release (incl. tables)
5 December 2006
A new study on The World Distribution of Household Wealth by the World Institute for Development Economics Research of the United Nations University (UNU-WIDER) was launched on Tuesday 5 December 2006. According to the study, the richest 2% of adults in the world own more than half of global household wealth. "The most comprehensive study of personal wealth ever undertaken also reports that the richest 1% of adults alone owned 40% of global assets in the year 2000, and that the richest 10% of adults accounted for 85% of the world total. In contrast, the bottom half of the world adult population owned barely 1% of global wealth."

The World Distribution of Household Wealth (PDF file - 1.14MB, 70 pages)
James B. Davies, Susanna Sandstrom, Anthony Shorrocks, and Edward N. Wolff
5 December 2006
Department of Economics
University of Western Ontario

WIDER is part of:
United Nations University (UNU)
- incl. links to : About UNU * UNU System * Environment & Sustainable Development * Peace & Governance * Capacity Development * Online Learning
- UNU Publications

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Economic Success Clearinghouse - U.S.
(formerly the Welfare Information Network)
Economic Success Clearinghouse connects you to resources about effective policies, programs and financing strategies that help low-income and working poor families.

Workforce development
- Services to help individuals connect to the job market, develop work-related skills, sustain employment, and advance in the labor market

Work supports
- Services, such as child care and food, housing, and transportation assistance, to help low-income families secure and retain employment

Income supplements
- Benefits, such as child support and tax credits, that boost the earnings of low-income workers

Asset development
- Supports designed to help low-income families build personal and financial resources, and achieve economic security

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Office of Community Services Assets for Independence - U.S.
The AFI Page features federal programs that give assistance to low-income families so they can accumulate assets and rise out of poverty.
- incl. links to : Home | About Asset Building | Assets for Independence | Apply for Funding | For Grantees | Resources | Contact AFI | Frequently Asked Questions
Assets for Independence
"Assets for Independence (AFI) is a Federal grant program that enables community-based nonprofits and State, local and Tribal government agencies to implement and demonstrate an asset-based approach for giving low-income families help out of poverty."
Source:
Administration for Children and Families
[ U.S. Health and Human Services ]

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Individual Development Accounts: Policies to Build Savings and Assets for the Poor
March 2005
by Ray Boshara
"Individual Development Accounts (IDAs)—matched savings accounts for low-income households—are a relatively new means of improving the lives of the poor. Advocates of IDAs argue that those with assets are more economically secure, have more options in life, and can pass on status and opportunities to future generations. They further argue that assets have positive social, psychological, and civic effects that are independent of the effects of income."

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The Saver's Credit:
Expanding Retirement Savings for Middle- and Lower-Income Americans - U.S.
March 2005
"(Enacted in 2001, the Saver's Credit ... provides a government matching contribution, in the form of a nonrefundable tax credit, for voluntary individual contributions to 401(k)-type plans, IRAs, and similar retirement savings arrangements. Like traditional retirement savings plan subsidies, the Saver's Credit currently provides no benefit for households that owe no federal income tax. However, for households that owe income tax, the effective match rate in the Saver's Credit is higher for those with lower income, the opposite of the incentive structure created by traditional pension tax preferences."

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Asset Building for Sustainable Development (Workshop)
Washington, DC
January 14-16, 2004
Workshop Materials - incl. links to the workshop agenda, speaker bios, presentations (Powerpoint and videos) and links to related online content
Sample:
Michael Sherraden: Asset-Based Development Approaches in the U.S.
PowerPoint Presentation (requires Microsoft Powerpoint or compatible software to read) - 202K, 46 slides

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Federal Assets Policy Report and Outlook 2004 (PDF file - 71K, 10 pages)
February 19, 2004
By Reid Cramer, Papia Debroy, Leslie Parrish, and Ray Boshara
"The purpose of this annual report is to summarize and assess federal assets policy efforts from last year, in the President’s new Budget, and for the coming session of Congress. To date, there has been no comprehensive analysis of federal policy from an assets perspective. While not intended to be exhaustive, this report identifies almost $320 billion in resources related to asset building included in the Bush Administration’s 2005 Budget. The overwhelming majority of these resources, $302 billion, are catalogued as tax expenditures, while almost $17 billion of discretionary spending is proposed."

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AssetBuilding.org - "Ideas, Policies and Programs to Broaden Asset Ownership"

Women & Assets - "A national initiative to advance the long-term economic well-being of women through asset building"

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State Policy Choices: Assets and Access to Public Assistance
October 2003
Fact sheet
Overview of the treatment of family assets in benefit eligibility criteria for major public assistance programs in the U.S.
- incl. asset exemption levels under the following programs : Cash Assistance under Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) - Food Stamps - Public Health Insurance - Other Government Assistance Programs (child and dependent care tax credits, earned income tax credits, Section 8 housing vouchers, unemployment insurance, and (in most states) Child and Dependent Care Fund (CCDF) subsidies.
PDF version (147K, 3 pages)

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International Association for Research in Income and Wealth (IARIW)
IARIW's major objectives:
- the furthering of research on economic and social accounting, including the development of concepts and definitions for the measurement and analysis of income and wealth
- the development and further integration of systems of economic and social statistics
- related problems of statistical methodology

The Review of Income and Wealth, 1966-2000
Journal of the International Association for Research in Income and Wealth
"The major objectives of The Review of Income and Wealth are the furthering of research on national and economic and social accounting, including the development of concepts and definitions for the measurement and analysis of income and wealth, the development and further integration of systems of economic and social statistics, and related problems of statistical methodology"
- incl. links to full text of back issues of the journal from 1966 to 2000, with several dozen studies in each issue
- wide range of topics, including : income inequality - measuring poverty and deprivation - pension wealth - income mobility - how best to measure wefare, real income, and output - poverty indices and policy analysis - relative or absolute poverty lines - demographic trends - much more...

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Child Trust Fund
"The Chancellor announced his intention to introduce the Child Trust Fund (CTF) in the April 2003 Budget. The CTF is part of the Government's strategy for saving and asset ownership."
- incl. links to further CTF resources

Savings Gateway Scheme
"The Saving Gateway is a proposal for an account providing a pound for pound Government-funded match for all money saved, up to a limit. The Saving Gateway would offer a valuable, transparent financial incentive to kick-start a regular saving habit, provided alongside financial education to enable individuals’ to make the right saving decisions."

The Child Trust Fund and Saving Gateway
"The two most high profile asset-based welfare policies are the Saving Gateway and Child Trust Fund."
- incl. links to five documents pertaining to these two initiatives

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Why Reform Welfare? (PDF file - 136K, 23 pages) - Australia
July 2003
Peter Saunders (Centre for Independent Studies)
- interesting presentation on Australian welfare reform, covers a lot of issues of relevance to social policymakers and the advocacy community here in Canada:
Welfare and Australian values - How welfare undermines self-reliance - Do taxpayers want to fund higher welfare spending? - Reforming welfare - Reforming Parenting Payment: Encouraging return to work when children start school - Reforming the Disability Pension: Tightening eligibility - Reforming Unemployment Benefits: Time limits - Are there enough jobs for people coming off welfare to do? - Looking longer-term: A possible move to Individual Accounts? - Conclusion: reducing welfare dependency.
Source:
Australian Social Policy Conference (9-11 July 2003)
[ Social Policy Research Centre ]
The SPRC conducts research and fosters discussion on all aspects of social policy in Australia
[ University of New South Wales ]

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Asset Building and the Escape from Poverty: A New Welfare Policy Debate
November 2003
"Governments in developed countries have long used, directly or indirectly through their tax systems, policies that subsidise or otherwise encourage the population at large to acquire assets such as financial savings, home ownership, retirement funds, education (human capital) or business capital. (...) This book establishes the context for a fruitful debate on the merits and demerits of asset building for the poor by setting out the basic ideas involved in asset-building programmes and proposals. It also outlines the social policy advantages that their proponents claim, and documents what the existing programmes and demonstration projects look like."
Abstract
Complete report (PDF file - 390K, 52 pages)
- incl. info about existing asset-building developments in the U.S., the U.K, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, and more
Source:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Asset-Based Social Policies

Politiques sociales fondées sur l'acquisition d'actifs