Has There Been a Failure to Compensate the Losers From Free Trade?

Abstract

The paper provides estimates of the extent to which U.S. communities that lost from free trade were compensated. Depending on the measure, commuting zones affected in 2000 and 2007 received compensation equal to only 34–43 percent of their losses, suggesting that Trade Adjustment Assistance spending would have needed to more than double to close the gap.