How does Core handle variable dependencies?

Core automatically identifies which variables are needed for a calculation (e.g., income for tax) and ensures they are calculated in the correct order before returning the final result.

Can I use this skill to debug calculation errors?

Yes, the skill includes tools for tracing calculations, allowing you to see exactly how the engine resolved formulas and parameters for specific periods.

What is the difference between PolicyEngine Core and country packages?

PolicyEngine Core is the generic simulation engine and infrastructure, whereas country packages like policyengine-us contain the specific tax and benefit rules for a particular jurisdiction.

Why is vectorization required in this skill?

Core uses NumPy for vectorized operations to process thousands of households simultaneously, ensuring the simulation remains high-performance and scalable.

PolicyEngine Core Microsimulation

Name: PolicyEngine Core Microsimulation
Author: PolicyEngine

byPolicyEngine

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Data Science & ML

Powers tax and benefit microsimulations with a vectorized engine for calculating complex economic policy impacts.

PolicyEngine Core is the foundational microsimulation engine used to build and execute complex tax and benefit models. It provides a robust framework for managing variables, hierarchical parameters, and entity relationships (such as households and tax units) while ensuring calculation accuracy and transparency. By utilizing vectorized operations and automatic dependency resolution, it allows developers and analysts to simulate policy changes at scale with high performance, making it an essential tool for creating country-specific tax models and policy impact APIs.

Key Features

01Vectorized simulation engine for high-performance population-scale calculations

02Hierarchical parameter management for tracking policy rules over time

03Support for complex entity relationships including individuals, families, and households

04Multi-period handling for annual, monthly, and longitudinal policy analysis

052 GitHub stars

06Automatic variable dependency resolution and calculation caching

Use Cases

01Developing and debugging tax and benefit formulas in country-specific policy packages

02Optimizing simulation performance through vectorized NumPy-based logic

03Tracing complex variable dependencies to audit calculation transparency

What are Skills?·How to Install

Install with 🐟 Skill.Fish

npx skillfish add policyengine/policyengine-claude tools-and-apis

For use in Claude.ai and ChatGPT

Download Skill