Patrick Cooney

As the U.S. economy stagnated during the pandemic, a surprising by-product of government assistance was the rapid decline in child poverty rates. Ford School experts Luke Shaefer, Patrick Cooney, and Betsey Stevenson celebrate this “triumph of...

The results of the 2020 Census have generated debate across the country, but perhaps nowhere as intensely as in Detroit. Michigan’s largest city, which has an overwhelming majority of African American and Hispanic residents combined of 85%, may have...

Noting that pandemic-era aid has ended just as prices are rising, the Washington Post reports that the middle class is feeling squeezed again. Two research reports by Poverty Solutions were referenced in the report.  "From December 2020 to...

WDET's Detroit Today notes that, "Child poverty is the highest in the U.S. compared to other developed nations. While we have programs to address poverty for our elders — social security and Medicare, chief among them — programs directed at children...

Economic and social impact of religious festivals In Mexico, “patron saint day” festivals are often local public holidays and involve substantial financial expenditures by households and governments. Festival dates vary greatly across localities:...

Arun Agrawal was selected as co-chair on the Intergovernmental Transformative Change Assessment, sponsored by the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Javed Ali provided his expertise on national security to numerous...

U.S. households were in a better financial position, on average, at the end of last year than in 2019, despite widespread joblessness and economic uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new University of Michigan...

The Detroit City Council is currently considering a guaranteed basic income program. Patrick Cooney, assistant director of the Detroit Partnership on Economic Mobility, discussed the benefits Detroiters would gain from the program.  “It would...

With COVID-19 still affecting the economy and people's finances, experts have seen food hardship increase across the country recently, rising faster in households without children. Patrick Cooney, assistant director of the Detroit Partnership on...

How Kohn Professor Luke Shaefer and the pandemic paved the way for an expanded Child Tax Credit By Lauren Slagter The passage of the American Rescue Plan Act in March ushered in a "euphoric" couple of weeks for Luke Shaefer, the Hermann and...

ANN ARBOR—Michigan's auto insurance reform law has contributed to an 18% drop in average premium costs from 2019 to 2020—the steepest decline in the country over that time period, according to new analysis by Poverty Solutions at the University of...

In March, Congress expanded the Child Tax Credit (CTC) to provide low- and middle-income families with monthly payments of $300 per child under 6 and $250 per child ages 6-17. The expanded CTC is already estimated to have reduced child poverty by...

A new program aims to replace roofs for low-income seniors and homeowners with disabilities in Detroit. Patrick Cooney, assistant director for policy impact at Poverty Solutions, spoke to Bridge Detroit about the long-term impacts of this type of...

The federal COVID-19 unemployment benefits are ending, but the expanded child tax credit plan was rolled out in July. After those first deposits, the U.S. Census Bureau reported a decline in food insecurity. "It’s heartening to see that expanded...

After the Michigan House of Representatives voted to end the extra unemployment aid early, Patrick Cooney, assistant director of economic mobility at Poverty Solutions, and Luke Shaefer, the Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and...

In order to get more people back into the labor force, Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently proposed the idea of paying people who go back to work. Patrick Cooney, assistant director of economic mobility at Poverty Solutions, explained that...

Following the release of his study crunching numbers from the U.S Census Bureau's Household Pulse Data, Luke Shaefer, the Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy, associate dean for research and policy engagement, and...

The New York Times highlighted a recent study by Luke Shaefer and Patrick Cooney, released by Poverty Solutions, which shows, "that sharp declines in food shortages, financial instability and anxiety coincided with the two most recent rounds of...

McDonald's workers are striking for better wages all across the country, including in Michigan. Many argue against a higher minimum wage, saying that it would cause job loss. Patrick Cooney, assistant director of economic mobility at U-M Poverty...

Businesses and companies need more workers right now, but they can't find them. Patrick Cooney, assistant director of economic mobility at U-M Poverty Solutions, attributed most of the gap between supply and demand of labor to public health. "Our...

More people around the country are looking to remodel their homes, but because of disruptions in the global supply chain, the price of remodeling has spiked. Pat Cooney, assistant director of economic mobility at U-M Poverty Solutions, pointed out...

Patrick Cooney and Luke Shaefer write an opinion for Bridge Michigan. "While a lot of people are hurting right now, we have also found the data tell a pretty simple story: when government acts to buffer families by stabilizing their finances,...

Material hardship in the United States rose significantly in the final months of 2020 and was particularly high for households with children, according to new research from Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan. The rise in hardship...

As the Biden administration embarks on its first hundred days, experts from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy have produced a series of policy briefs on key issues. Download a PDF of this brief or read the web-formatted version...

As the Biden administration embarks on its first hundred days, experts from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy have produced a series of policy briefs in their areas of expertise. All of the prepared briefs can be downloaded...

After months of studying the cost of auto insurance, Joshua Rivera (MPP ’17) finally had the data he needed to see how much Michiganders spend to keep their vehicles insured. What he found shocked him. "When I saw that 97% of the zip codes...

The Motor City developed with cars in mind, but for a majority of its population-particularly those who are low-income-access to a car is financially impossible. Michigan’s notoriously high auto insurance rates are a main culprit, according to...