{"title":"Measuring the effects of Obergefell v. Hodges: Revisiting same-sex marriage legalization and mortgage demand","authors":"Nir Eilam, Hasan Shahid","doi":"10.1002/pam.70058","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70058","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The U.S. Supreme Court's 2015 ruling in <i>Obergefell v. Hodges</i> made same-sex marriage legal in all states. We estimate the effect of this landmark ruling on the mortgage demand of same-sex couples. Using data on the near universe of mortgage applications, we employ a difference-in-differences estimation strategy that compares the mortgage demand from same-sex and different-sex couples, before and after the ruling. We find that the ruling increased the mortgage demand from same-sex couples relative to different-sex couples by 12% in states where same-sex marriage was previously unavailable. Interestingly, we also estimate a 15% increase in the mortgage demand of same-sex couples in states that had already legalized same-sex marriage prior to the ruling. This suggests that the federal Supreme Court ruling brought greater certainty to same-sex couples, even in states where same-sex marriage was already legal. Additionally, we find that the effects were significantly larger for same-sex female couples compared to same-sex male couples, consistent with prior literature documenting higher marriage take-up among women in same-sex relationships. Our results emphasize the importance of federal Supreme Court rulings over and above similar state-level legislation in shaping outcomes of vulnerable populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145116410","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The impact of granting undocumented immigrants driver's licenses on fatal crashes","authors":"Ruinan Zhao","doi":"10.1002/pam.70053","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70053","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper examines the effect of granting undocumented immigrants driver's licenses on fatal crashes. Using county-level crash data from the Fatality and Injury Reporting System Tool, I leverage the quasi-randomness of the timing of the driver's license reforms adoption across states to identify the causal effect of driver's license reforms. My findings show that granting undocumented immigrants driver's licenses increases overall fatal crashes by nearly 5%, equivalent to 0.46 more fatal crashes in a county per year. The effect is stronger in states with a higher population of undocumented immigrants. By investigating the mechanism through which the policy impact is likely to occur, I show that undocumented immigrants may be more likely to engage in risky driving behavior once they obtain driver's licenses. Several robustness checks and placebo tests support my main findings.</p>","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144927831","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Benjamin Hansen, Kendall Houghton, Keaton Miller, Caroline Weber
{"title":"Shifting tax incidence: Evidence from the Washington State cannabis market","authors":"Benjamin Hansen, Kendall Houghton, Keaton Miller, Caroline Weber","doi":"10.1002/pam.70041","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70041","url":null,"abstract":"<p>We study how prices respond when a 25% gross receipts tax remitted by cannabis manufacturers was eliminated in Washington state and the retail excise tax was simultaneously increased from 25% to 37%. Standard theory suggests that this change should have increased welfare for manufacturers, retailers, and consumers; instead, our analysis shows that the reform unexpectedly shifted benefits toward manufacturers at the expense of retailers and consumers, who faced higher tax-inclusive prices post-reform. We hypothesize that this outcome was driven by behavioral factors such as anchoring and loss aversion. Our findings add to a growing body of evidence that tax reforms can affect market outcomes in ways not predicted by standard economic models, offering a cautionary lesson for policymakers considering similar reforms.</p>","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144898409","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The effect of compliance assistance on pollution discharges and violations of environmental regulations","authors":"Paul J. Ferraro, Jay P. Shimshack","doi":"10.1002/pam.70056","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70056","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Researchers and policymakers assert competing behavioral models of polluters. One model portrays polluters as best approximated by the perfectly informed, rational actor from economics textbooks. Another model portrays polluters, particularly small and medium facilities, as imperfectly informed, cognitively bounded, pro-social actors. If this second model is more accurate, environmental programs that offer low-cost technical assistance may be especially effective in promoting regulatory compliance. Yet the empirical evidence for the effectiveness of such compliance assistance is scant. In a pre-registered analysis using panel data research designs, we exploit idiosyncratic program roll-out to estimate the effects of a compliance assistance program that was delivered to hundreds of Ohio water polluters. Although the program was initially deemed a success by federal and state environmental protection agencies, we estimate that, if the program had any effect on polluter behaviors, those effects were small. In our preferred specification, we estimate a precise zero effect of compliance assistance on environmental compliance and pollution. The lack of evidence for behavioral impacts from compliance assistance does not imply such programs cannot be effective, but it does underscore the need for more deliberate evaluation designs when state and federal agencies roll out their compliance assistance interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/pam.70056","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144924453","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Disinformation, Misinformation, and Democracy: Legal Approaches in Comparative Context by Ronald J. Krotosynsky Jr., Adrás Koltay, and Charlotte Garden. Cambridge University Press, 2024, 430 pp., $140.00 (hardcover).","authors":"Zoe Tzanis, Samuel Woolley","doi":"10.1002/pam.70055","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70055","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144898215","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ryotaro Hayashi, Hyuncheol Bryant Kim, Norihiko Matsuda, Trinh Pham
{"title":"Mentoring, educational preferences, and career choice: Evidence from two field experiments in Bhutan","authors":"Ryotaro Hayashi, Hyuncheol Bryant Kim, Norihiko Matsuda, Trinh Pham","doi":"10.1002/pam.70034","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70034","url":null,"abstract":"<p>We evaluate two randomized controlled trials in Bhutan testing whether near-peer mentoring can shift students’ educational preferences toward STEM and TVET pathways. Mentors provided personalized guidance, shared their own experiences, and offered information on admissions and labor market outcomes. The interventions significantly increased students’ interest and perceived knowledge, but had limited effects on actual applications or enrollment. In the STEM stream, limited follow-through appears linked to structural constraints such as academic selectivity and limited program capacity; for TVET, social stigma and parental skepticism likely played a constraining role. These findings highlight the potential of light-touch, scalable mentoring to shape aspirations, while underscoring the need for complementary strategies to support behavior change and enable follow-through.</p>","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144778453","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science: A Scientist's Warning by Peter J. Hotez. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2023, 161 pp., $24.95 (hardcover).","authors":"MaryBrooke U. Burval","doi":"10.1002/pam.70057","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70057","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144927833","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World by Anne Applebaum. Random House, 2024, 272 pp., $29 (paperback).","authors":"Guzel Garifullina","doi":"10.1002/pam.70054","DOIUrl":"10.1002/pam.70054","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"45 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144911068","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Impacts of the Four‐Day School Week on Juvenile Crime","authors":"Rafiuddin Najam, Paul N. Thompson","doi":"10.1002/pam.70101","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.70101","url":null,"abstract":"Schools are increasingly adopting four‐day school weeks to address financial, attendance, and teacher retention issues, a trend that the COVID‐19 pandemic has amplified. However, little is known about the nonacademic behavioral responses of juveniles to such transitions. We examine the impacts of adopting a four‐day school week on juvenile crime, focusing particularly on disparities across rurality and locale size, using a difference‐in‐differences estimation approach. We find significant upticks in juvenile crime, primarily in property and violent crimes, within non‐rural and large law enforcement agencies. Conversely, we find evidence suggesting a decrease in juvenile drug‐ and alcohol‐related crimes during school hours on weekdays. In addition to changes in juvenile crime on nonschool weekdays, we observe spillover effects on the remaining weekdays and weekends, primarily in non‐rural and large agency settings. Thus, decision‐makers should be cognizant of the potential increase in juvenile crime that may result from the four‐day school week.","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"26 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147519290","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sarah Halpern‐Meekin, Jill Hoiting, Ruby Mendenhall, Michelle Spiegel
{"title":"“When I Can Make Them Smile”: Cash Transfers and the Joys of Mothering in the Context of Poverty","authors":"Sarah Halpern‐Meekin, Jill Hoiting, Ruby Mendenhall, Michelle Spiegel","doi":"10.1002/pam.70103","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.70103","url":null,"abstract":"Poverty researchers focus on whether interventions relieve material hardships and the stresses of financial insecurity. Although these are essential outcomes, a narrow focus on them can limit the evaluation of policy effectiveness. Further, the predominant focus in the field on individual outcomes may miss how policy matters for family relationships. The present study takes a relational perspective and attends to positive policy outcomes such as joy. It uses the case of unconditional cash transfers to show the joys of mothering and the role of such policy interventions in these experiences. From the Baby's First Years study, we analyze interviews with 80 women, who were living below the poverty line at their child's birth; 65% identified as Black. We highlight how mothers use the cash transfer money to create opportunities for joy and bonding in their mutually rewarding relationships with their children. We show how financial resources serve purposes beyond meeting material needs and as human‐capital investments. Financial resources are also conduits for relationship building and family flourishing, including through joy. To holistically assess policy impacts requires a comprehensive picture that allows scholars and policymakers to understand how government programs can help families not just survive but thrive.","PeriodicalId":48105,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Policy Analysis and Management","volume":"19 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147519210","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}