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60 The Benefits to Taxpayers from Increases in Students’ Educational Attainment ing assuming that the education effects are 75 percent of our estimates, the lowest estimate of the savings on social program spending that would result from that increase in education is about $15,000 for white, U.S.-born men. The estimated reduction in social program spending for each of the other demographic groups is larger, assuming the effect of increasing education from less than high school graduate to high school graduate is only 75 percent as large as our estimate. The results presented in Table 4.3 show that, even if our estimates of the effects of increases in education on social program spending are significantly too high, such increases will still result in substantial reductions in social program spending to those whose education is increased. Summary Increased educational attainment is rewarded in the job market with lower likelihood of being unemployed, higher income when employed, and higher likelihood to have private insurance when employed. Each of these three mechanisms leads to lower demand for support from the government. The greatest savings in spending on social programs are produced by individuals who graduate from high school rather than dropping out. High school dropouts generally earn low wages and therefore meet the eligibility criteria for many social support programs. High school dropouts are also less likely to hold jobs that offer health insurance, so they are more likely to use government-provided insurance. Beyond the high school diploma, some college seems to have more impact for women, and a bachelor’s degree seems to have greater impact for men. Overall, Medicare spending is influenced by educational attainment and relatively insensitive to racial/ethnic and gender differences.
Chapter Five Educational Attainment and Spending on the Corrections System The inmate population is less educated than the general population. According to a 2003 analysis by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (Harlow, 2003), 40 percent of state prison inmates and 47 percent of jail inmates nationwide have not completed high school. This compares rather strikingly with the 18 percent rate for the general population (Table 5.1). Investments in education could reduce the demand for correctional capacity. In other words, increased educational attainment yields benefits to taxpayers in the form of savings in the criminal justice system. In this chapter, we examine the effects of educational attainment on public spending for the corrections system. Appendix D presents the empirical analyses used to estimate the effects of increased educational attainment on incarceration and the resulting costs. Table 5.1 Educational Attainment for Inmates and the General Population Education Level State Prison Inmates (1997) Jail Inmates (1996) General Population (1997) 8th grade or less 14.2% 13.1% 7.2% Some high school 25.5% 33.4% 11.2% GED 28.5% 14.1% – High school graduate 20.5% 25.9% 33.2% Some college 9.0% 10.3% 26.4% Bachelor’s degree or more 2.4% 3.2% 22.0% Total 1.1 million 0.5 million 192 million SOURCE: Harlow (2003). NOTE: For the general population, individuals with a GED are counted as high school graduates. 61
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THE ARTS CHILD POLICY CIVIL JUSTICE
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The Benefits to Taxpayers from Incr
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Preface Meeting the educational dem
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Figures 3.1. Present Value of Lifet
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Abbreviations ADA CPS EITC FTE GED
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Page 39 and 40: Chapter Two Analytic Approach There
Page 41 and 42: Analytic Approach 15 effects of edu
Page 43 and 44: Analytic Approach 17 women employed
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Page 47 and 48: Analytic Approach 21 tion of educat
Page 49 and 50: Analytic Approach 23 The difference
Page 51 and 52: Analytic Approach 25 but a very sma
Page 53 and 54: Analytic Approach 27 1997 changes g
Page 55 and 56: Chapter Three Payments for Taxes an
Page 57 and 58: Payments for Taxes and Social Progr
Page 67 and 68: Chapter Four Spending on Social Sup
Page 69 and 70: Spending on Social Support Programs
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Page 101 and 102: Educational Attainment and Public R
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Page 115 and 116: Data and Sources 89 Program Benefit
Page 117 and 118: Appendix B Estimating Tax Payments
Page 119 and 120: Estimating Tax Payments 93 Federal
Page 121 and 122: Appendix C Social Program Participa
Page 123 and 124: Social Program Participation and Co
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Appendix D Incarceration Cost Estim
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References Aos, Steve, Roxanne Lieb
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References 115 Krop, Richard, Steph
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References 117 U.S. Department of J
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