Welfare Benefit Levels Research Articles

의사결정나무분석을 활용한 중장년 근로자의 일자리 특성 분석

The study aimed to examine job characteristics for middle-aged workers using decision tree analysis. To do this, data from the 25th wave of the Korean Labor Panel (year 2022) was utilized, with a study sample 4,570. First, the factor with the most significant impact on employment according to gender was identified as 'work hours format.' When working full-time, the percentage decreased by 36.5% for women and increased by 63.5% for men. For part-time work, the percentage increased significantly by 85.5% for women and decreased by 14.5% for men. Second, the factor with the most significant impact on employment according to age range was identified as 'highest education level.' For those with a high school education or below, the percentage decreased by 38.2% for ages 40-49 and increased by 61.8% for ages 50-59. For those with a college degree or higher, the percentage increased by 66.0% for ages 40-49 and 70.0% for those with an associate degree. Third, summarizing the study results, the proportion of men is higher for individuals with a college degree or higher, working full-time, and having high job satisfaction. On the other hand, the proportion of women is higher for those working part-time and having a high level of welfare benefits. Additionally, for individuals with an associate degree, stable employment, and job satisfaction, the proportion of those in their 40s is higher. For those with a high school education or below, working in non-office jobs, and having unstable employment, the proportion of those in their 50s is higher. Given that middle-aged workers are more likely to withdraw from the labor market as they age, continuous evaluation of educational training and policy support for job sustainability is necessary. There is a need for support to maintain quality employment even after reemployment.

The Economic Cost of Unpaid Care to the Public Finances: Inequalities in Welfare Benefits, Forgone Earnings-related Tax Revenue, and Health Service Utilisation

Abstract There is limited research on the effect of unpaid care on the public finances, and on the inequalities present when providing support to those with caring responsibilities. The aims of this research are to estimate the overall costs to the State of providing care, and to identify sub-groups of carers with relatively greater costs to the government who may need more support. We used waves eight to ten from the United Kingdom Household Longitudinal Survey and performed two-part Generalised Linear Models and Propensity Score Matching. We found that providing care is associated with excess and potentially avoidable costs to government in terms of forgone earnings-related tax revenue, welfare benefits, and health service use. Older carers have lower healthcare costs, indicating, perhaps, issues related to accessing to services due to their role (as they may neglect their own health, worry about safety and costs of public transport). Older carers were also found to have lower levels of welfare benefits, suggesting challenges associated with applying for support (such as navigating cumbersome application processes and stigma-related barriers).

Two faces of benefit generosity: comparing justice preferences in the access to and level of welfare benefits

Abstract Welfare generosity is a multidimensional concept that refers to both the access to benefits and the levels of benefits (in terms of the amounts paid to recipients). However, in analyses of public support for welfare, this distinction has been largely disregarded. To gain a fuller picture of attitudes towards welfare redistribution, the current study explicitly compares the two elements and examines which distributive justice principles—that is, equality, equity, and need—are preferred to govern, on the one hand, the access to benefits and, on the other hand, their levels. The article evaluates this distinction in two different distributive contexts (pensions and unemployment benefits) and contrasts social-structural as well as ideological dividing lines. For this purpose, data from the Belgian National Elections Study 2019 are analysed. The results indicate that the access to and levels of benefits are clearly distinct dimensions in public opinion, as different justice principles are preferred for the two policy dimensions. In addition, structural equation models illustrate that the access dimension is more ideologically structured, whereas preferences regarding the levels of benefits are more strongly stratified along social-structural lines. Overall, the results imply that social justice preferences are clearly different when considering the access to benefits or their level. This distinction should be taken into account in welfare attitude research.

The Relationship between Animal Welfare and Farm Profitability in Cage and Free-Range Housing Systems for Laying Hens in China.

Simple SummaryWith public concern increasing in China for animal welfare in livestock production, the welfare and economic outcomes of different farming systems for laying hens needs to be examined. Animal welfare outcomes and initiatives are linked to the economic efficiency of the farm, which for the producer may require a balance or trade-off between these issues. This study investigated animal welfare, egg production and economic parameters in cage and free-range farms in China. Our results identified potential welfare issues that can be addressed on both farm types, and potential points of income that can be improved by enhancing hen welfare. Therefore, our results offer some directions for welfare and economic improvements on cage and free-range egg farms in China.Several countries and regions have regulations in place to provide standards for the welfare of production animals, which have implications for breeding, management and trade. In the chicken egg production industry, the welfare impacts of this are not well understood. In the past decades, free-range systems were widely used for local chicken breeds in poultry industry in China, but their use has gradually declined due to the lower competitiveness compared to commercial cage systems. However, the practices of free-range systems for hens raising have gradually increased again over the past decade, as consumer individualized demand for higher food quality and animal welfare has increased. We recruited 14 free-range farms and 45 cage farms from Beijing, Shandong, Hebei, Anhui, Yunnan, Gansu and Jiangsu provinces in China, for an evaluation of hen welfare, production and economic outcomes from farm operations. This study provides data for the welfare outcomes of laying hens in China and preliminarily explored the relationship between welfare level and economic income within farming system types. The researchers visited the farms and used Welfare Quality measures to investigate the welfare, and farm self-reported profits. Nonparametric Mann–Whitney U tests were used to compare the welfare scores between cage and free-range rearing farms. Correlation and regression are used for the analysis of the animal welfare scores, economic data, and production metrics. The general income from free-range farms was linearly correlated with red mite score and stocking density (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05, respectively). The results showed less centimeters of feeder and drinker space per animal in the free-range system than in cage systems (p < 0.05 and p < 0.01, respectively). Welfare scores for both the stocking density and beak condition were significantly better in the free-range systems than the cage systems (p < 0.001), as were qualitative behavior assessment scores (p < 0.05). The total egg production and peak egg production in cage farms were much higher than in free-range farms (p < 0.001), and egg loss rate was significantly lower (p < 0.001). While the production efficiency of free-range farms was lower than that of cage farms, general income per 10,000 hens was actually higher. Our results provide some evidence that some welfare indicators and general income (per 10,000 hens) in free-range farms in China were better than those of cage farms. The results indicate that better parasite control and lower stocking densities may result in improved hen welfare on free-range farms and potentially improve profitability. The level of welfare and economic benefits of free-range farms vary widely, and there was potential room for improvement in feeding space, drinking water space and human–animal relationship.

The spectra of concealment and disclosure of disability: the experiences of people with mild disability in South Korea

Many disabled people choose to conceal or disclose their disability after weighing diverse levels of discrimination, social awareness, and welfare benefits they encounter in their daily lives. However, few studies have focused on choice experiences regarding concealment or disclosure of disability in various daily situations. Drawing on the experiences of 14 people with mild disabilities in South Korea, this study explores the multi-dimensional contexts of people who choose to present or hide their disability. Our analysis identifies five spectra of disability concealment /disclosure: aversive concealment from social oppression, defensive disclosure for self-protection, aggressive disclosure of disability identity, responsive disclosure for welfare benefits, and seeming concealment of disability identity. Such spectra indicate that the choice to conceal or disclose is a flexible self-presentation process. Furthermore, we discuss how various concealment/disclosure patterns are influenced by South Korea’s radical disability movement that aimed to highlight the existence of people with disabilities in society. Points of interest This study raises a doubt about the existing dichotomised perspective that views hiding disability as a result of disability discrimination and revealing disability as an expression of positive disability identity. This study argues that hiding/revealing one’s disability are strategic options that an individual can choose from in accordance with his/her situation. This study explores why and how disabilities are hidden/revealed by interviewing 14 people with nonvisible disabilities in South Korea. The participants choose to hide or disclose their disability after weighing the disability discrimination, prejudice, recognition, and benefits that will arise from each situation. Beyond the two existing dichotomies (hiding vs. revealing disability), our findings highlight five different strategic options that interviewees choose from according to their situational contexts.

Welfare benefits in highly decentralized fiscal systems: Evidence on interregional mimicking

AbstractThis paper analyses the determinants of welfare benefit levels within a highly fiscally decentralized context. More specifically, we analyse the role of mimicking as a driver of the institutional design of subnational government policies in the absence of federal co‐ordination and financing. Empirically, we focus on the welfare benefit programmes of Spanish regional governments during the period 1996–2015. Our results strongly support the significant role played by mimicking: regional public agents observe what their peers are doing and act accordingly, and this holds even in a context of low mobility of households.

Unemployment and crime: Experimental evidence of the causal effects of intensified ALMPs on crime rates among unemployed individuals

AbstractPrevious studies investigate whether levels of welfare benefits reduce crime among the unemployed. The current paper expands this literature by testing whether the intensity of other welfare programs aimed at the unemployed affects their criminal activity. For this purpose, the study uses evidence from a Danish social experiment that randomly assigned active labour market programs (ALMPs) of different intensity to newly unemployed individuals (N = 4.710, 41.7 per cent women). Using a negative binomial model, I find that the experiment significantly reduced the number of criminal convictions from 61 in the control group to 43 among the treated. While this 40 per cent decrease reflects a numerically small effect, the results still indicate that the intensity of ALMPs affects criminal behaviour among the unemployed.

Autonomy Welfare Meaning and Possibility—Focusing on the Jeollabuk-do Social Welfare Ordinance—

지방자치, 지방분권이 본격적으로 추진되면서 사회복지분야에서도 지역형복지, 자치복지라는 형태로 나타나고 있다. 이에 본 연구는 지방자치와 분권이 가지는 특성을 살펴보고 지역사회복지, 지역형복지, 자치복지가 무엇인지 그 의미를 살펴보았다. 그리고 전라북도 사회복지조례를 중심으로 자치복지의 가능성을 진단하였다. 본 연구는 자치복지를 지방자치단체 스스로 권한과 책임을 가지고 주민참여를 통해서 사회복지의 수준을 결정하고 제공하는 것으로 정의하였다. 우선 자치복지가 가능하기 위해서는 지방자치단체만의 특성을 반영한 자주적인 사회복지를 개발할 필요가 있다. 제공되는 사회복지급여의 종류는 현금급여뿐만 아니라 현물급여, 서비스 등 지역의 특성과 대상자 특성을 고려하여 자유롭게 운영할 필요가 있다. 그리고 제공되는 사회복지급여 수준은 종류에 따라 양과 질 모두에 있어서 국가가 제공하는 수준(national minimum) 이상으로 설정하거나 해당 지방자치단체만의 기준(regional minimum)을 설정하여 제공하는 것이 필요하다. 다음으로 자치복지는 단발성이 아닌 항상적으로 존재하고 접근되어야 한다는 관점에서 해당 지방자치단체에만 적용되는 자치복지에 대해서는 가칭 ‘자치복지결정에 관한 협치 조례’를 제정하여 의무적으로 주민들이 의사결정에 참여하도록 할 필요가 있다. 끝으로 자치복지가 실현되기 위해서는 재정분권이 이루어져야 하며 지방자치단체의 재정자립도를 높이기 위한 노력도 동시에 이루어져한 한다. 뿐만 아니라 자치입법 능력을 갖춰 명실상부한 자치복지가 되도록 해야 할 것이다.As local autonomy and decentralization have been promoted in earnest, social welfare fields have also emerged in the form of regional welfare and autonomous welfare. therefore, this study examined the characteristics of local autonomy and decentralization, and examined the meaning of community welfare, regional welfare, and autonomous welfare. in addition, the possibility of autonomous welfare was diagnosed based on the Social Welfare Ordinance of Jeollabuk-do. This study defined autonomous welfare as the local governments with their own authority and responsibility to determine and provide social welfare levels through participation of residents. First of all, in order for autonomy welfare to be possible, it is necessary to develop independent social welfare that reflects the characteristics of local governments. the types of social welfare benefits that are provided need to be freely operated in consideration of local characteristics such as in-kind benefits and services as well as cash benefits. in addition, the level of social welfare benefits to be provided should be set above the national minimum in terms of both quantity and quality, or by setting a regional minimum. Next, in the view that autonomy welfare is not a single-shot but always exists and should be approached, it is necessary to enact the tentatively called Governance Ordinance on Autonomy Welfare Decision for autonomy welfare applied only to the local governments and make the residents participate in the decision making obligatoryly. Finally, in order for the autonomy welfare to be realized, the decentralization of finance must be made and efforts to increase the financial independence of local governments are made at the same time. in addition, they should have autonomy legislative ability to be autonomy welfare.

Socio-Economic Gradients and Disability During The Transition to Young Adulthood: A Longitudinal Survey and Register Study in Norway

ABSTRACTThe study aimed to investigate trends and explanatory factors for socio-economic inequalities associated with disability during the transition to young adulthood. A sample of 2606 participants (56% females and 44% males) was prospectively followed from adolescence to young adulthood. Disability status, age, gender, mental health problems, scholastic competence and social acceptance were measured from the longitudinal survey Young in Norway, while socio-economic indicators such as participants’ and their parents’ levels of education, annual income, unemployment and welfare benefits were extracted from the National Population Register in Norway. Regression models were applied to estimate associations between disability and socio-economic outcomes. The findings show that disabled adolescents have a significantly greater risk of achieving lower levels of education and are unemployed and over-represented in welfare benefits during the transition to young adulthood. Most of these associations between disability and socio-economic outcomes were explained by mental wellbeing and self-perceptions. The study suggests that interventions addressing mental wellbeing and social competence might reduce the development of socio-economic inequalities among young people with disability.

Long-term socioeconomic consequences and health care costs of childhood and adolescent-onset epilepsy.

To estimate long-term socioeconomic consequences and health care costs of epilepsy with onset in childhood and adolescence. A historical prospective cohort study of Danish individuals with epilepsy, age up to 20years at time of diagnosis between January 1981 and December 2012. Information about marital status, parenthood, educational level, employment status, income, use of the health care system, and cost of medicine was obtained from nationwide administrative and health registers. We identified 12,756 and 28,319 people with diagnosed with epilepsy, ages 0-5 and 6-20years at onset, respectively. Using follow-up data for a maximum of 30years, 1,394 of those ages 0-5years at onset were compared with 2,897 controls persons without epilepsy, and 10,195 of those ages 6-20years at onset were compared with 20,678 controls without epilepsy. Compared with people without the epilepsy, those with epilepsy tended to have a lower level of education, to be less likely to be married, to be more likely to live alone, and to have higher divorce and unemployment rates, lower employment rates, and people with epilepsy were more likely to receive disability pension and social security. Income was lower from employment, which in part was compensated by social security, sick pay, disability pension and unemployment benefit, sick pay (public-funded), disability pension, and other public transfers. Predicted health care costs 30years after epilepsy onset were significantly higher among persons with epilepsy onset at 0-5 and 6-20years, including costs for outpatient and inpatient services (hospital services), emergency room use, primary health care sector (general practice), and use of medication. The long-term negative effects on all aspects of health care and social domains, including marital status, parental socioeconomic status, educational level, employment status, and use of welfare benefits compared with controls without epilepsy calls for increased awareness on childhood- and adolescent-onset epilepsy.

PPP motorway ventures – an optimization model to locate interchanges with social welfare and private profit objectives

ABSTRACTThis paper proposes two optimization models for locating motorway interchanges when dealing with public–private partnerships. The models innovate by considering simultaneously the conflicting goals of the two main parties involved, government and concessionaires, in their pursuit to maximize social welfare benefits and profits, respectively. The models maximize social welfare benefits (using a consumers' surplus measure) such that a given level of profits is ensured, being one deterministic and the other stochastic. The application of the models to a real case study, involving the A25 motorway in Portugal, show that they can help determine win–win solutions for both government and concessionaires, that is, solutions with high levels of profits and social welfare benefits.

A Tax Benefit Model for Policy Evaluation in Luxembourg: Luxtaxben

We develop a behavioural micro simulation model (LuxTaxBen) that contains very precise information on income tax rules, as well as eligibility-rules for a number of welfare programs, such as social assistance, housing allowance etc. The model has been built specifically for analysing the Luxembourgish tax-transfer system whereby one can generate disposable income for various combinations of hours of work and welfare. It can be used for calculating accurate (net) household incomes conditional on labour supply while income tax rules and the various welfare benefit-levels are complicated functions of earned and unearned income. The LuxTaxBen is capable to handle almost all parts of the Luxembourg tax and transfer systems. Such a model has a great potential to be used for evaluating the effects of tax-benefit policy reforms and other changes on poverty, inequality, incentives and the governmental budget. It provides the users the opportunity to simulate the new rules in the Luxembourg tax-transfer system. The model consists of a number of modules such as module for child benefit, housing allowance, fees for child care. It is constructed in an integrated way so all the modules can be used together. This means that it is possible to analyses the interaction between the different transfer systems.

Pathways to adulthood and their precursors and outcomes

Norway has an extensive welfare system which may provide adolescents with many options and high levels of flexibility in terms of pathways to adulthood. This study aimed to describe Norwegian developmental pathways to adulthood, including changes in role statuses (such as living situations, education, work, marriage/cohabitation and parenthood) from 16 to 30 years of age, and their precursors and outcomes. Repeated measures latent class analysis of longitudinal data from 998 Norwegian individuals indicated three main pathways to adulthood among women and men. In both sexes, most individuals undertook a long period of education and postponed family formation. However, some individuals started working early, a group of women established families with partners and children early, and a group of men remained primarily single between 16 and 30 years of age. Furthermore, the results show that pathways to adulthood in Norway are surprisingly similar to pathways in other countries such as the US, UK and Finland. The results indicate that pathways to adulthood are influenced by social reproduction factors in a country with high levels of welfare benefits as well. In addition, the results suggest that pathways involving living with a partner and either higher education or work are associated with high life satisfaction at age 30.

The Impact of Housing Subsidies and Prices on Mothers' Living Arrangements: Evidence from the Census

Although rarely the primary focus of study, housing subsidies and prices influence the most fundamental decisions about family living. This analysis uses 1980, 1990 and 2000 US Census data to examine the effects of housing prices and subsidies on the living arrangements of mothers with young children while controlling for welfare benefit levels, unemployment rates, gender ratios, child support enforcement and personal characteristics. Results suggest that housing prices are positively associated with all shared arrangements relative to living alone, while housing subsidies are negatively associated with marriage and living with family relative to living alone.

EXPLAINING THE DISTINCTIVENESS OF MEXICAN-IMMIGRANT WELFARE BEHAVIORS: THE IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYMENT-RELATED CULTURAL REPERTOIRES.

Social scientists generally seek to explain welfare-related behaviors in terms of economic choice, social structural, or culture of poverty theories. Because such explanations incompletely account for nativity differences in public assistance receipt among those of Mexican origin, this paper draws upon the sociology of migration and culture literatures to develop alternative materialist-based cultural repertoire hypotheses to explain the welfare behaviors of Mexican immigrants. We argue that immigrants from Mexico arrive and work in the United States under circumstances fostering employment-based cultural repertoires that, compared with natives and other immigrant groups, encourage less welfare participation (in part because such repertoires lead to faster welfare exits) and more post-welfare employment, especially in states with relatively more generous welfare-policies. Using individual-level data predating Welfare Reform from multiple panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), merged with state-level information on welfare-benefit levels, we assess these ideas by examining immigrant-group differences in welfare receipt, retention, and transition to employment across locales with varying levels of welfare benefits. Overall, the results are consistent with the notion that cultural repertoires incline Mexican immigrants to utilize welfare not primarily to avoid work, cope with disadvantage, or perpetuate a culture of dependency, but rather mostly to minimize employment discontinuities. This result carries important theoretical and policy implications.

Is there a “race-to-the-bottom” in the setting of welfare benefit levels? Evidence from a policy intervention

In this paper we investigate whether local governments react on the welfare benefit levels in neighboring jurisdictions when setting their own benefit levels. We solve the simultaneity problem arising from the welfare game by utilizing a policy intervention; more specifically, we use a centrally geared exogenous placement of a highly welfare prone group (refugees) among Swedish municipalities as an instrument. The IV estimates indicate that there exists a “race-to-the-bottom” and that the effect is economically as well as statistically significant; if the neighboring municipalities decrease their welfare benefit level by 100 SEK, a municipality decreases its benefit level with approximately 41 SEK. This result is robust to several alternative model specifications.

Welfare Returns and Temporary Time Limits: A Proportional Hazard Model

This study analyzes welfare returns for families who leave welfare for a period of 12 months in response to a temporary time limit requirement in Nevada. Findings reveal that relatively few families return for cash assistance after sitting and that the majority who do return soon after their sit-out period is complete. Results also reveal that families with young children, large families, and those with multiple spells before reaching their time limits are at greater risk of re-entry. The study demonstrates the critical role of the economy in shaping welfare re-entry. A simulation exercise estimates that if faced with a high unemployment rate of 14%, nearly 92% of those who leave because of temporary time limits would eventually return to welfare. KEY WORDS: economy and welfare returns; proportional hazard models; welfare temporary time-limits; welfare reform ********** One of the most conspicuous features of 'the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA, EL. 104-193) was the imposition of time limits. This legislation replaced the federal entitlement program Aid to Families with Dependent Children with a block grant for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Presently, the federal government prohibits states from using federal TANF funds for most families for more than 60 cumulative months (Pavetti & Bloom, 2001). Nine states impose a permanent time limit of less than 60 months, and five states impose a temporary period of ineligibility following the receipt of cash benefits ranging from 18 to 36 months (Rowe & Roberts, 2002). Permanent or temporary welfare time limits represent a nonpermissive welfare system and extreme measures taken to curb welfare dependence. Nevada, where the present study took place, imposes a 60-month time limit and requires families to out for 12 months after receiving cash assistance for 24 months. This requirement creates a unique opportunity to examine how welfare returns play after recipients sit for 12 months. Using longitudinal monthly administrative data and a proportional hazard model, this study examined how the economy, welfare benefit levels, and recipients' personal characteristics or behaviors before reaching time limits shape patterns of return after sitting in Nevada. The issue of welfare recidivism takes on greater significance in the wake of welfare reform than it did before PRWORA, in part because welfare recipients are using more of their lifetime benefits after returning to welfare. Yet, only a few studies have examined welfare recidivism after the inception of PRWORA, and to our knowledge the present study is the first one to explain patterns of return to welfare after leaving because of mandatory temporary time limits. The results of this study are interesting not only for what they can tell us about welfare returns under a unique circumstance in a single state, but also because they may serve as a template for similar research in other states. The findings of this investigation have special value for states with temporary time-limited welfare or for states considering such a policy option. The findings have nationwide value and relevance because of general national concerns about longterm self-sufficiency and welfare re-entry. Our study determines the extent to which patterns of re-entry and the effect of explanatory factors on welfare returns resemble similar research conducted in states with no temporary time limits. State flexibility in designing welfare policies or programs in the wake of welfare reform means that researchers need to investigate state-specific programs and that Congress needs to consider state-specific research findings when debating future national welfare reforms. BACKGROUND Return Rates and Patterns Before welfare reform, returns to welfare ranged from 17% to 37% within one year after exit and between 35% and 45% within two years after exit (Bane & Ellwood, 1994; Harris, 1996; Hofferth, Stanhope,& Harris, 2005; Meyer & Cancian, 1996). …

Making Work Pay

In the 1990s, many states liberalized statutory rules regarding the tax treatment of earned and unearned income for welfare program eligibility and benefit levels. I use quality control data from the AFDC/TANF program over 1983–2002 to document changes in the corresponding effective tax rates and benefit guarantees. After welfare reform I find that effective tax rates fell by 50 percent on earned income and by at least 70 percent on unearned income. States that aggressively reformed their welfare programs, especially those that implemented a stringent sanctions policy on benefits, experienced more rapid reductions in effective tax rates and guarantees.

The Free Movement of Inactive Citizens in the EU - A Challenge for the European Welfare State?

The EU Directive on Free Movement of 2004 extended free movement within the EU to Union citizens who are inactive and gave them access to the welfare benefits of host countries. The paper examines the extent to which these measures provoke migration to those countries with the highest levels of welfare benefits. The paper concludes that migration is limited by the requirement of considerable financial assets in order to bridge a waiting period of five years as well as negative financial incentives. On the other hand, migration is attractive for those working in the informal sector of host countries.

Efficiency and equity comparison of cordon- and area-based road pricing schemes using a trip-chain equilibrium model

This paper compares performances of cordon- and area-road pricing regimes on their social welfare benefit and equity impact. The key difference between the two systems is that the cordon charges travellers per crossing whereas the area scheme charges the travellers for an entry permit (e.g. per day). For the area licensing scheme, travellers may decide to pay or not to pay the toll depending on the proportion between their travel costs for the whole trip-chains during a valid period of the area license and the toll level. A static trip-chain equilibrium based model is adopted in the paper to provide a better evaluation of the area-based tolls on trip-chain demands. The paper proposes a modified Gini coefficient taking in account assumptions of revenue re-distribution to measure the spatial equity impact. The model is tested with the case study of the Utsunomiya city in Japan. The results demonstrate a higher level of optimal tolls and social welfare benefits of the area-based schemes compared to those of the cordon-based schemes. Different sizes of the charging boundary have significant influences on the scheme benefits. The tests also show an interesting result on the non-effect of the boundary design (for both charging types) on their equity impacts. However, when comparing between charging regimes it is clear that the area schemes generate more inequitable results.