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Bank Failures Warn of Deeper Economic ProblemsDuring the Great Recession, a whopping 0.014 percent of banks were closed by the FDIC.

Remote Work Through the Eyes of Three 20-SomethingsRemote work is here to stay.

Remote Work and Labor MarketsThere are more remote workers today than there are immigrants in the U.S.

The Amish in IndianaIt is hard not to draw similarities between the Amish and newer immigrant groups.

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March 19, 2023 Remote Work Through the Eyes of Three 20-SomethingsRemote work is here to stay.
March 12, 2023 Remote Work and Labor MarketsThere are more remote workers today than there are immigrants in the U.S.
March 5, 2023 The Amish in IndianaIt is hard not to draw similarities between the Amish and newer immigrant groups.
February 26, 2023 Subsidizing Builders Fixes the Wrong Housing ProblemRemote workers and their families can now live wherever they wish.
January 15, 2023 Three Types of Public DebtAll types of public debt are effectively transfers of wealth from the future to our present selves.
January 8, 2023 Remote Work Is Indiana’s Biggest Opportunity and RiskThere are now more Hoosiers in remote work than there are in manufacturing and logistics combined.
January 1, 2023 The CHIPS Act Was Wise LegislationSemiconductors are a key part of national defense, among other industries.
December 11, 2022 READI Grant Is Great for Most of IndianaBusinesses and households value public services more highly than public infrastructure spending.
November 27, 2022 Economic Optimism and Worry on ThanksgivingThe balance of power between freedom and tyranny has never been this favorable.
November 6, 2022 Adopt the Governor’s Public Health Commission Report Proposals Hoosier health problems are in areas that are the most susceptible to public health interventions.
October 9, 2022 A Recession Is Time to Think About the Long TermManufacturing employment is now a smaller part of our economy than it was in previous downturns.
August 14, 2022 SB1 Will Be Deeply Damaging to Indiana’s EconomyPublic policy is about trade-offs, it is just imperative to know what they are.
July 31, 2022 Trying to Measure the Effect of Abortion Bans on Our EconomyThe effect we see right now is vastly different from what we’ll see in a few years.
July 24, 2022 Why Are Rich Places Growing and Poor Places in Decline?To participate in a new economy, a community’s workforce must possess the ability to absorb new skills that may be vastly different from what they currently know.
July 17, 2022 My 750th ColumnColumns like mine are designed to help people think about issues they might otherwise not read about.
May 22, 2022 The Undersupply of College Graduates Is Clobbering Indiana’s EconomyNationwide, about 8 in 10 of all net new jobs go to 4-year college graduates.
May 1, 2022 Lilly CEO Speaks to Indiana’s FutureIndiana must better educate a higher share of its young adults and make more communities into places they’d like to live.
April 3, 2022 The U.S. Job Creation MachineNo U.S. state, and very few cities, have more ‘global’ jobs than they did in the spring of 1992.
March 27, 2022 A Tough Two Decades for the Hoosier EconomyMost of Indiana’s job growth this century has been in low-wage work.
March 20, 2022 Quality of Life Spending Is a Conservative PolicyHome prices and wages signal the desirability of communities.
January 23, 2022 Indiana’s Long-Term Economic Prospects Are PoorState policymakers should be deeply alarmed about a return to a ‘normal’ economy.
December 26, 2021 Some Lessons from Hallmark Christmas MoviesA lot of economic ideas are packed into Hallmark movies.
December 19, 2021 READI Grant a Big Success and Important PolicyClusters of cities and counties do better with sharing ideas, vetting proposals and hiring talented staff.
November 7, 2021 READI Grants Already a SuccessThe READI Grant program asks communities to identify and prioritize their long-term development projects.
September 5, 2021 The Evolving Nature of WorkWork has the potential to provide meaning and satisfaction, unconnected to the economic importance of the task at hand.
July 11, 2021 What Is ‘Quality of Place?’When choosing a place to live, workers consider the wages they will earn against the cost of housing and access to amenities.
June 13, 2021 Some Early Census Results for IndianaPeople are the driving force of economic growth.
April 25, 2021 Polarization of Jobs and PlacesUnfortunately, short-term spending policies aren't likely have much long-term effect on the decline of middle-wage jobs.
April 18, 2021 The Post-COVID World Favors High Quality-of-Place CommunitiesBetween 23 million and 35 million households will find themselves newly unencumbered by the need to live within an easy daily commute to work.
April 11, 2021 Economic Development Should Be About Value, Not CostIn the late 1970s–80s, you were taught that low tax rates and capital investment were the key to growth and prosperity, but that theory has not panned out as anticipated.
March 7, 2021 Our Biggest Economic Challenge Is School Funding Better educational attainment both causes and is caused by a better economy.
February 21, 2021 Questions from an Economic ForecastThe economic recovery is in the hands of vaccine distributors, not economic policymakers.
December 27, 2020 Some Thoughts on the Coal EconomyMany of the cities and towns born in the Industrial Revolution have lost their original economic reason for being.
December 13, 2020 How to Stop Worrying About National PoliticsLocal government requires pragmatic competence, not ideological showmanship.
November 29, 2020 Regional Divergence and Local TaxesIn recent decades, nearly all large urban places thrived, while smaller cities and rural places mostly stagnated.
October 25, 2020 Indiana’s Hidden Fiscal DeficitSince 2009, Indiana slipped in every key measure of long-term growth.
October 18, 2020 Honest Self-Assessment Key to Future Growth If community leaders are focused on the short term, there is a natural tendency to ignore long term problems.
October 4, 2020 Some Thoughts on the Rural-Urban DivideRural places are culturally and ethnically diverse and face different challenges from urban places.
August 30, 2020 Gresham’s Law and Subsidized ApartmentsTax dollars that should’ve gone to schools, public safety and other purposes will now supporting new ‘executive housing.’
April 19, 2020 No Better Time to Rethink Economic Development SpendingCongress made clear that many not-for-profits provide local benefits that make the nation stronger.
February 23, 2020 Returning to Economic Growth Requires PatienceThere are no quick solutions, only long ones.
October 13, 2019 What Can Economic Development Research Do for Your Community?Nearly 70 million Americans live in counties that are losing population.
June 23, 2019 Low Cost of Living Probably Means Low-Valued CommunityThe value of two identical homes will vary by as much as 25 percent given the quality of the local schools.
April 7, 2019 Diverging Regional EconomiesThe places that are most eager to attract new factories are far less likely to get them.
February 17, 2019 Housing Demand in Indiana’s CommunitiesThe traditional economic factors of supply and demand explain nearly all new home construction in Indiana’s counties.
September 23, 2018 Critiques of Capitalism All About State and Local PoliciesYoung people turning to our workforce development system will find it focused wholly on supplying workers to businesses rather than offering a resource for career-minded adults.
August 5, 2018 Midwest Must Save Middle Class NeighborhoodsIf your community isn’t thriving, your problems are far deeper than you suppose.
June 17, 2018 Midwest Communities Need Fact-Based Leadership, Not BromidesFar too many people view their city or county as a business with a marketing problem.
April 29, 2018 A Not-So-Quiet Revolution in Economic DevelopmentThe economic development of the past 50 years has cheapened our land, immiserated workers, and starved local governments of much needed revenues.
April 22, 2018 A Tax and Spending AnecdoteIt is not the tax rate the matters, but rather the value we receive from taxes that informs our choices.
April 1, 2018 Think More Deeply About Community Strengths and WeaknessesSome forces pull people to cities, while others move them out.
March 11, 2018 Rustbelt Cities Must Focus on Middle Class NeighborhoodsSchool quality is always the most pressing issue for middle class neighborhoods, but other amenities matter. The cost of improving amenities in communities that are likely to survive for several decades is very small.
March 11, 2018 Rustbelt Cities Must Focus on Middle Class NeighborhoodsSchool quality is always the most pressing issue for middle class neighborhoods, but other amenities matter. The cost of improving amenities in communities that are likely to survive for several decades is very small.
February 26, 2018 School Choice Saves CommunitiesAll school choice did was let students flee underperforming schools without forcing families to move.
February 11, 2018 Housing Shortages Are Really Neighborhood ProblemsA third of the variation of home prices in a city are determined by school quality.
February 4, 2018 Most Indiana Counties Should Stop Pursuing Economic GrowthEighty or more Indiana counties are in absolute or relative decline.
January 28, 2018 HB 1315 Is a Pragmatic Fix to Muncie School DilemmaThis school corporation needs a restoration of confidence before it can achieve any real stability.
December 3, 2017 Indiana Doesn’t Have a Jobs ProblemBusinesses in Indiana offer jobs that far outnumber the unemployed.
November 19, 2017 Population Decline Is No MysteryMost folks in declining cities and towns seemingly have no idea why they are in decline.
October 22, 2017 Rustbelt Was Losing People Long Before They Lost Factory JobsIn the 1960s, population decline was already evident in the fated Rustbelt cities.
October 15, 2017 The Lessons of GDP DataPlaces that are doing well have shifted their focus to attracting people, not factories.
September 24, 2017 Time to Quit Building Business Incubators, Co-Working Spaces and Maker’s SpacesThese spaces do not significantly improve the local economy.
July 2, 2017 The Wisdom of Long-Run ThinkingIndiana has few centers of rapid growth, but most counties must rethink their plan for the next 50 years.
June 25, 2017 Some Economics of Food DesertsFood deserts are more about poor places than poor people.
June 4, 2017 Municipal Pools and Parks MatterThe real purpose of municipal recreational facilities is to provide benefits that would otherwise be unlikely to accrue to a community.
February 12, 2017 Bad Ideas Have Real CostsInstead of focusing on local food, focus on local schools and neighborhoods.
January 22, 2017 The Wrong Political Message Won’t Help Our EconomyTo create jobs, focus on places, not businesses.
December 25, 2016 Holiday Season a Good Time to Think About Personal ChoiceWe make choices about leisure, labor, making a living, and building a life.
October 2, 2016 Economic Changes Mean Primacy of Place MattersMaking cities good for workers is good for business.
September 11, 2016 Cut the Tax Cut Debate, Spend the Money WiselyLet’s focus on workers, not businesses.
May 15, 2016 Economic Development Conference is a ‘Must Attend’ EventSchool improvement is the first step in modern economic development policies.
April 3, 2016 Population Numbers Offer Warning to Indiana We should shift our focus from rural to urban communities.
February 14, 2016 Economic Development Policies Point to Bigger Statewide ProblemsTheir problem isn’t that they have too few jobs, but rather that the folks who hold those jobs don’t want to live in those counties.
February 7, 2016 Practical Men, Economic Development and Long-Dead EconomistsThe import-export economic base model is an outdated concept.
January 17, 2016 Some Cures for Indiana’s Troubled Local Government FinanceTo fund schools, parks, and roads, we must tackle three things.
November 15, 2015 Plans for the Regional Cities Initiative Are RevealingLet's briefly review the proposed initiatives.
November 1, 2015 Mayor’s Election All About Primacy of PlaceModern economic development policies have been in the spotlight thanks to municipal election debates.
October 4, 2015 Lessons from a Public LectureResearch now convincingly argues that relative city size is mostly influenced by the location choices of more educated households and agglomerations.
September 27, 2015 The Lessons of Mounds LakeThe myriad problems with the proposal came to light in a democratic process that spanned several months.
July 19, 2015 Workers Aren’t CommoditiesEconomic development and business attraction are misunderstood.
June 21, 2015 Watch Economic Development SpendingBusinesses must locate where their customers are, not where economic developers lure them.
May 31, 2015 Thinking Warmly about Public PoolsCommunity pools serve as a ‘public good’ for the surrounding area.
March 15, 2015 The Borg-Warner Natatorium; Repurposing Hoosier FactoriesMany vacant properties will never again be used for their original purpose.
February 8, 2015 A Re-Look at the “Creative Class”How do communities attract workers employed in the jobs of tomorrow?
June 15, 2014 The Fault in Our Film Tax CreditsTax incentives caused this Indianapolis-set movie to be shot in another state.

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