Connect with Megan
About Megan
Hatch's research focuses on the causes and consequences of policies that disproportionately affect vulnerable populations. One stream of her research agenda examines state preemption of local laws. A second stream of her research explores state and local laws that affect rental housing, including tenant protection, eviction, utility insecurity, and the CDBG program. Hatch serves on the board of Heights Community Congress, a local fair housing nonprofit.
Contributions
How States Can Fight Growing Economic Inequality
No Jargon Podcast
In the News
Publications
Describes the effect state-level redistributive policies, such as taxing the wealthy, giving tax credits to the poor, spending on the poor, and regulating the labor market, can have on market inequality.
Examines the consequences of economic downturns for state redistributive policy and politics, arguing that labor market downturns shift policy outcomes and suppress the increased redistribution otherwise expected under Democratic party control.
Reviews the literature on discrimination of voucher recipients and the potential for "source of income" anti-discrimination laws to mitigate some of these negative outcomes.
Provides a broad portrait of how economic policies affect health. Finds better health outcomes in states that enacted higher tax credits for the poor or higher minimum wage laws and in states without a right-to-work law that limits union power.
Examines the initial socialization of many public administrators to the field by performing a content analysis of the syllabi of highly ranked MPA programs and evaluates what percentage of assigned authors are female and how the curriculum addresses gender diversity. Provides strategies for instructors desiring to increase the alignment of the three Cs in their curriculum.
Examines state-level landlord-tenant policy approaches to determine whether there is significant policy variation and whether states illustrate identifiable policy types. Finds that renters in protectionist and contradictory states move significantly more than renters in probusiness states do.
Discusses Criminal Activity Nuisance Ordinances (CANOs), local laws found in thousands of cities throughout the country which penalize property owners if repeated incidents of criminal activity related to their property occur over a set period of time. Finds these laws often have consequences for survivors of domestic violence and others experiencing crisis.