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Spending and Job-Finding Impacts of Expanded Unemployment Benefits: Evidence from Administrative Micro Data

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Listed:
  • Peter Ganong
  • Fiona E. Greig
  • Pascal J. Noel
  • Daniel M. Sullivan
  • Joseph S. Vavra

Abstract

We show that the largest increase in unemployment benefits in U.S. history had large spending impacts and small job-finding impacts. This finding has three implications. First, increased benefits were important for explaining aggregate spending dynamics—but not employment dynamics— during the pandemic. Second, benefit expansions allow us to study the MPC of normally low-liquidity households in a high-liquidity state. These households still have high MPCs. This suggests a role for permanent behavioral characteristics, rather than just current liquidity, in driving spending behavior. Third, the mechanisms driving our results imply that temporary benefit supplements are a promising countercyclical tool.

Suggested Citation

  • Peter Ganong & Fiona E. Greig & Pascal J. Noel & Daniel M. Sullivan & Joseph S. Vavra, 2022. "Spending and Job-Finding Impacts of Expanded Unemployment Benefits: Evidence from Administrative Micro Data," NBER Working Papers 30315, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:30315
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    Cited by:

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    2. Robert G. Valletta & Mary Yilma, 2024. "Enhanced Unemployment Insurance Benefits in the United States during COVID-19: Equity and Efficiency," Working Paper Series 2024-15, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
    3. Dmitriy Sergeyev & Chen Lian & Yuriy Gorodnichenko, 2023. "The Economics of Financial Stress," NBER Working Papers 31285, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Metodij Hadzi-Vaskov & Emiliano Luttini & Mr. Luca A Ricci, 2025. "Micro-Evidence on the Consumption Impact of Income-Support Policies During COVID-19," IMF Working Papers 2025/064, International Monetary Fund.
    5. Ananat, Elizabeth & Glasner, Benjamin & Hamilton, Christal & Parolin, Zachary & Pignatti, Clemente, 2024. "Effects of the expanded Child Tax Credit on employment outcomes," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 238(C).
    6. Ferreira, Miguel A. & Adelino, Manuel & Oliveira, Miguel, 2025. "The heterogeneous effects of household debt relief," Working Paper Series 3034, European Central Bank.
    7. Andreas Hornstein & Marios Karabarbounis & Andre Kurmann & Etienne Lale & Lien Ta, 2023. "Disincentive Effects of Unemployment Insurance Benefits," Working Paper 23-11, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
    8. Hamdi, Naser & Kalda, Ankit & Sovich, David, 2025. "Between a rock and a hard place: The costs and benefits of expanded unemployment insurance benefits," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 242(C).
    9. David Autor & Arindrajit Dube & Annie McGrew, 2023. "The unexpected compression: Competition at work in the low wage labor market," POID Working Papers 076, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    10. Rendon, Silvio, 2025. "Prudent Job Search and Consumption Sensitivity," IZA Discussion Papers 18320, IZA Network @ LISER.
    11. Diamond, William & Landvoigt, Tim & Sánchez, Germán Sánchez, 2025. "Printing away the mortgages: Fiscal inflation and the post-covid boom," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    12. Michael Gelman & Zachary Orlando & Dhiren Patki, 2024. "The Impact of Government Transfer Payment Frequency on Consumption: Evidence from Delayed UI," Working Papers 24-16, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
    13. Martin Gervais & Roozbeh Hosseini & Lawrence Warren, 2025. "Unemployment Insurance, Wage Pass-Through, and Endogenous Take-Up," Working Papers 25-59, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    14. Harry J. Holzer & Glenn Hubbard & Michael R. Strain, 2024. "Did pandemic unemployment benefits increase unemployment? Evidence from early state‐level expirations," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 62(1), pages 24-38, January.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • E62 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Fiscal Policy; Modern Monetary Theory
    • E71 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on the Macro Economy
    • G5 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance
    • H3 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
    • J65 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment Insurance; Severance Pay; Plant Closings

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