The Under-Reporting of Transfers in Household Surveys: Its Nature and Consequences

Bruce Meyer, Wallace K C Mok () and James Sullivan

No 15181, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: High rates of understatement are found for many government transfer programs and in many datasets. This understatement has major implications for our understanding of economic well-being and the effects of transfer programs. We provide estimates of the extent of under-reporting for ten transfer programs in five major nationally representative surveys by comparing reported weighted totals for these programs with totals obtained from government agencies. We also examine imputation procedures and rates. We find increasing under-reporting and imputation over time and sharp differences across programs and surveys. We explore reasons for under-reporting and how under-reporting biases existing studies and suggest corrections.

JEL-codes: C42 H53 H55 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009-07
Note: CH LS PE
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (188)

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Working Paper: The Under-Reporting of Transfers in Household Surveys: Its Nature and Consequences (2009)
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