Robert Breunig

Robert Breunig is a Professor of Economics and Director of the Tax and Transfer Policy Institute at the Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California Riverside (1998) and a Bachelor of International Studies from the School for International Training (1987). His research focuses on public policy, tax policy, labor economics, and applied econometrics, with significant contributions to understanding child care impacts on women's labor supply, immigration effects on labor markets, and tax system reforms. He collaborates extensively with Australian government agencies including the Treasury, Productivity Commission, and Australian Bureau of Statistics. His current projects include tax reform post-COVID-19 and the intergenerational transmission of disadvantage via the Youth in Focus initiative.

Key research interests include labor market dynamics, household economics, innovation spillovers, and welfare policy. He has published over 75 articles in top journals, with recent work analyzing disability support schemes' impact on autism diagnoses, digital exclusion risks, and migrant economic outcomes. Breunig teaches 'Economics for Government' to public policy students and advises on statistical methods for program evaluation, emphasizing evidence-based policymaking.

He currently works with institutions like the Australian Taxation Office, Melbourne Water, and Save the Children Australia on projects such as housing assistance evaluations and employment policy assessments. His expertise spans econometric theory, public economics, and policy design, with a focus on bridging academic research and practical governance challenges.