Biography
Linda Giannarelli is a senior fellow in the Income and Benefits Policy Center at the Urban Institute, where her work focuses on the operation of the US social safety net and the potential for improving the economic well-being of low-income families through policy changes. Her research career has included analyses of the full range of US safety net programs, including cash benefits, nutrition benefits, and tax credits, giving her a deep understanding of the individual programs and their interactions.
Much of her work uses the Transfer Income Model (TRIM). Giannarelli leads the work to maintain and develop the model, and she coled the effort to develop a version of the model focused on state analysis; the federal government uses estimates from the TRIM3 model for special projects and ongoing data series. A nationally recognized expert in microsimulation modeling, Giannarelli has contributed her expertise to government panels and other research groups. Since 2007, she has led or coled a series of projects using TRIM3 to examine the impacts of potential policy changes—including changes in government benefit programs, minimum wage increases, and transitional jobs programs—on poverty levels.
Giannarelli leads the development of the Net Income Change Calculator, an online tool that explores the impact of increased earnings on family economic well-being, taking into account the impact of both benefits and taxes. She also provides senior guidance to the Welfare Rules Database and the Child Care and Development Fund Policies Database projects.
Giannarelli holds an MA in economics from the George Washington University.
