Demographic Intelligence Advisor Lyman Stone in mid-September spoke before a United States Congress Joint Economic Committee hearing aimed at addressing the costs of raising a family. As our research has noted, there is a significant difference between the number of children American women desire and how many they actually are having. Stone in his remarks said the fertility gap is mostly being caused by delayed marriage leading to lower levels of childbirth. He also provided policy recommendations that could help to narrow the gap. Stone’s testimony can be viewed in full here.