Amanda Agan
Amanda Agan is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Rutgers University. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago.
Voting History
Policing and public safety
Increasing police budgets will improve public safety.
| Vote | Confidence |
|---|---|
| Neutral/No Opinion | 5 |
| Median Survey Vote | Median Survey Confidence |
|---|---|
| Agree | 7 |
Increasing social service budgets (e.g. housing, health, education) will improve public safety.
| Vote | Confidence |
|---|---|
| Agree | 6 |
| Median Survey Vote | Median Survey Confidence |
|---|---|
| Agree | 8 |
Comments
In the long-run likely yes. More/better education reduces crime (Lochner&Moretti 2004, Heckman e.a. 2010, Deming 2011); access to health insurance decreases crime (Aslim e.a. 2019, He&Barkowski 2020); safety net access in childhood decreases adult crime (Barr&Gibbs 2019, Bailey e.a. 2020); summer jobs decrease violence (Heller 2014). Could depend on program, of course.
Increasing accountability for police misconduct will improve public safety.
| Vote | Confidence |
|---|---|
| Agree | 5 |
| Median Survey Vote | Median Survey Confidence |
|---|---|
| Agree | 6 |
Comments
We do not have a lot of evidence on accountability yet: mixed evidence from police unions (Dharmapala e.a. 2018; Goncalves 2021); accountability for discrimination through affirmative action decreases victimization (Harvey and Mattia 2019). More accountability should decrease misconduct, could improve police-community relationships. Seems important regardless.
Comments
Depends on how spent and definition of public safety. Additional officers reduce reported crime (Evans&Owens 2007); but increase police contact, which can decrease safety and psychological well-being for some communities and potentially be criminogenic (Chalfin e.a. 2021, Agan e.a. 2021). Mixed evidence for other spending reducing reported crime.