jobs and employment	231
economics	178
education	149
economic development	146
state and local government	129
taxes	123
finance	109
indiana	106
migration and population change	104
budget and spending	104

Commentaries tagged with state and local government

May 28, 2023	Educational Attainment, the 21st Century Fund and the Future of SchoolingIndiana ranks 42nd in educational attainment.
May 21, 2023	Big Savings for Ending Prevailing WageMy statistical models show that repealing state prevailing wage laws save taxpayers money.
May 14, 2023	Re-Thinking Economic Development A large share of the most mobile families—perhaps half—no longer need to live near where they work.
May 7, 2023	Money Illusion and InflationPrice fluctuation could cause inflation to last longer, but it didn’t cause the inflation, it simply extends the pain.
April 23, 2023	Economic Opportunity Is Now in High Quality of Life PlacesAs Americans grew richer, we began to value more than just economic opportunity in our location choices.
April 2, 2023	The Five Skills Employers Tell Me They NeedI’ve asked countless numbers of leaders in business, government, military, and organizations.
March 19, 2023	Remote Work Through the Eyes of Three 20-SomethingsRemote work is here to stay.
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.
February 12, 2023	What Is Happening to Labor Supply?Wishing to employ someone is not the same as labor demand.
February 5, 2023	HB1004 Would Restrict Hospital MonopoliesIndiana’s not-for-profit hospitals are among the most profitable businesses in the United States.
January 22, 2023	Some Labor Market Facts You Won’t Read ElsewhereIndiana is simply not producing a 21st century workforce.
January 15, 2023	Three Types of Public DebtAll types of public debt are effectively transfers of wealth from the future to our present selves.
December 18, 2022	The Anderson Family Scholar HouseThe best assistance for a family comes comprehensively.
December 11, 2022	READI Grant Is Great for Most of IndianaBusinesses and households value public services more highly than public infrastructure spending.
December 4, 2022	Inflation Will Make the Legislature’s Job Difficult This YearThe budget challenges faced by state legislatures are twofold.
November 13, 2022	The Timing of Economic PolicyCentral planning of economic activity likely will result in wasteful, ineffective policies.
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 16, 2022	Partisan Effect of Disinformation on COVID DeathsNationwide, at least 250,000 Americans died of COVID because they chose not to be vaccinated.
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.
September 11, 2022	Benefits and Costs of EducationFor the vast majority of students, college is among the best financial investments they will ever make.
September 4, 2022	Lingering Effects of COVID on WorkThe U.S. is still about 1.0 percent below its pre-COVID participation rate.
August 28, 2022	Student Loan Forgiveness Is a Policy MistakeThis addition to federal debt during this time risks worsening inflation.
August 21, 2022	Limiting Future InflationOverreacting to inflation can be worse to the economy than underreacting.
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.
August 7, 2022	It Is Time to Face the Facts About Factory JobsThe education and skills of today’s displaced factory workers don’t match the many available jobs nationwide.
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.
July 10, 2022	The Tensions of Economic Policy in a Volatile TimeDiffering political views can lead to very different policy choices.
June 26, 2022	Inflation Affects Each Family DifferentlyWe understand earthquakes and hurricanes better than we do inflation.
June 19, 2022	Yes, State Stimulus Checks Boost InflationTax reductions and rebates can only increase inflation.
June 12, 2022	Time to Dump the Rich States, Poor States RankingsTax policy is the wrong incentive to spur economic growth.
June 5, 2022	Mindless Economic Development Strategy?Much of what you see and read about these jobs announcements is raw political fiction.
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 24, 2022	Ending Hospital Monopolies Is Needed to Restore Free MarketsThe economic argument against monopoly power is that it interferes with the free functioning of markets.
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.
February 6, 2022	Some Surprising Lessons from COVID Learning LossThe median school saw pass rates on standardized tests drop by more than 10 percent.
January 23, 2022	Indiana’s Long-Term Economic Prospects Are PoorState policymakers should be deeply alarmed about a return to a ‘normal’ economy.
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.
December 12, 2021	The 2022 ForecastFrom retail and restaurants to logistics and manufacturing firms, the U.S. economy has been astonishingly resilient.
November 21, 2021	Tax Debate Should Be About Value of Government Services, Not PriceOver the past two decades, Indiana cut business taxes and saw agonizingly slow economic growth.
November 7, 2021	READI Grants Already a SuccessThe READI Grant program asks communities to identify and prioritize their long-term development projects.
August 29, 2021	COVID Reveals Regional InequalityThe latest jobs report captures the geographic clustering of COVID and economic performance.
July 25, 2021	Ending the Pandemic UI Was a Rare Mistake by This AdministrationThe pandemic unemployment insurance payments were as close to a ‘free lunch’ for Hoosier taxpayers as anything we’ll ever receive.
July 18, 2021	Free Speech and Senate Bill 414The origin of free speech problems on campus lie primarily outside the classroom.
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 27, 2021	School Choice, Cost Savings and Educational SpendingIndiana adopted universal school choice a little more than a decade ago.
June 13, 2021	Some Early Census Results for IndianaPeople are the driving force of economic growth.
May 30, 2021	Pay Shortage, Not Labor ShortageThe most relevant data is not on the quantity of jobs, but the wages that indicate whether or not there is a labor shortage.
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.
March 28, 2021	What Will This Economic Recovery Yield for Indiana?The quest to better fund schools and improve our workforce cannot become a partisan issue.
March 14, 2021	Two Sides of the Minimum WageWhat role should the government play?
March 7, 2021	Our Biggest Economic Challenge Is School Funding Better educational attainment both causes and is caused by a better economy.
February 28, 2021	Teacher Pay Is the Symptom of Deeper ProblemsState spending per Hoosier student is down more than 7.0 percent since 2010.
February 21, 2021	Questions from an Economic ForecastThe economic recovery is in the hands of vaccine distributors, not economic policymakers.
February 14, 2021	Stop Restricting Indianapolis GrowthIn the 21st century, a full 85 percent of the state’s population growth happened within the Indianapolis metro area.
January 31, 2021	How This Recession Is UnfoldingIt appears now that we’ll end 2020 with a downturn that ranks in the top five to seven worst years since the 1920s.
January 3, 2021	Political Economy for the HolidaysTo avoid the stain of hypocrisy, ideas must also guide our behavior.
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.
November 15, 2020	It’s the Disease Wrecking the Economy, Not the Government ResponseWe Americans are stubborn people, for both good and ill.
November 8, 2020	Some Places of Economic CompromiseWe are in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, and that gives us a chance for Congress to compromise.
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 11, 2020	The Lengthening Impact of COVIDMost states end up taxing heavily those things that were most affected by COVID.
September 6, 2020	COVID-19 and InequalityThe pandemic continues to exert a historic effect on our economy, and we must confront it with honesty, facts and determination.
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.’
August 16, 2020	State and Local Tax Support Is an Urgent NeedWhile many businesses are able to adapt, the underlying loss of permanent jobs is alarming.
July 26, 2020	Challenges for Indiana’s Colleges Threaten Long-term GrowthSome of the costs of COVID-19 on US colleges are already emerging.
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.
March 15, 2020	Federal Stimulus, Local Leadership Are KeyThe farther away government gets from us, the less useful it becomes in matters that directly affect our lives.
January 12, 2020	Fixing Regional InequalityMarket forces dictate much of the advantages and disadvantages of each place.
November 25, 2019	Time for an Education Tax IncreaseNothing predicts the income of a region better than the average education of its citizens.
September 8, 2019	The Costs of Natural DisastersNatural disasters impose costs on society, businesses, households and government.
August 25, 2019	Lessons Learned from an Economic Development DebacleModern factories with emissions don’t belong near populated places.
August 18, 2019	Disdain for Voters at Root of Tax IncentivesTax incentives come at the expense of local taxpayers and taxing units.
June 16, 2019	My Talk to School SuperintendentsFuture job skills are likely to demand more fundamental learning.
May 30, 2019	Our ‘Business-Centric’ Model Is Wrong and HurtfulMistaking the economy of a nation or region as one giant company can lead to deep policy mistakes.
May 19, 2019	Our New Immigration StudyNew immigrants in Indiana should be especially welcomed.
April 28, 2019	Immigration Was the Bright Spot in the 2018 Indiana Population DataOnly 15 of Indiana’s 92 counties grew faster than the nation as a whole.
April 14, 2019	We Need to Send 10,000 More Hoosier Kids to College Next YearIf only 20 percent of the gains of higher education are due to actual learning or acquired skills, it may still be the best investment our state and local governments can make.
April 7, 2019	Diverging Regional EconomiesThe places that are most eager to attract new factories are far less likely to get them.
March 24, 2019	A Frank Column on Education, Subsidies and PayWe should be very careful about promoting job training in careers that offer low wages.
March 17, 2019	Beware Panacea for Economic GrowthAs a stand-alone feature of economic growth, only human capital matters.
March 3, 2019	Some Unpleasant News on Education Spending PrioritiesThe State of Indiana funds K-12 education, and school boards pay teachers.
January 27, 2019	Local Newspapers Are Key in Reporting CorruptionResearch suggests that newspaper closures lead to higher costs of local government borrowing.
January 6, 2019	Brookings Study Paints Grim Picture of Indiana’s Workforce Investment FocusWe are focusing our workforce spending towards yesterday’s jobs and doing little to prepare workers for the skills needed to enter the careers of the future.
November 18, 2018	Amazon LessonsThe clearest lesson of Amazon is that people matter to business location decisions, probably more than everything else combined.
October 28, 2018	Thinking About the Next RecessionThe good is news is that labor markets seem strong, jobs are plentiful and wages may be rising.
October 7, 2018	Amazon and Some Harsh Facts About Pay and Labor ShortagesIn several industries, businesses are unwilling or unable to pay market wages for the workers they want.
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.
May 20, 2018	School Referenda and Local GovernmentRecent examples reinforce the simple notions of local governance.
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.
March 25, 2018	Schools Need Bolder ActionEvery extra dollar must be spent on educating Muncie’s children and restoring confidence in the future.
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.
January 14, 2018	School Financial Problems an Important Issue for This Legislative SessionSchool children in poor areas receive more funding than students in rich areas.
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 29, 2017	Gas Tax Hike Popular Evidence of Good GovernanceTaxpayers generally support higher taxes when they can reasonably expect better public services for them.
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 23, 2017	Automation, Trade and Urbanization Require More Resilient People and PlacesOur study implies that regional inequality might be poised for a big increase.
June 11, 2017	Illinois a Joking Matter No LongerThe scale of Chicago’s problems are eye-popping.
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.
March 19, 2017	Taxing Robots Is NonsenseBill Gates is right to worry about tax systems, but he takes the wrong approach in solution.
January 22, 2017	The Wrong Political Message Won’t Help Our EconomyTo create jobs, focus on places, not businesses.
January 8, 2017	Indiana’s Dwindling Tax BaseAn adjustment to our sales and gas taxes may pave the way for better infrastructure and education.
October 30, 2016	Don’t Miss the ‘Unseen’ EconomyMaybe the best example of the unseen economy is local economic development.
September 11, 2016	Cut the Tax Cut Debate, Spend the Money WiselyLet’s focus on workers, not businesses.
March 6, 2016	The Irony of Dark Boxes and TIFBig box stores kill other big box stores.
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.
January 17, 2016	Some Cures for Indiana’s Troubled Local Government FinanceTo fund schools, parks, and roads, we must tackle three things.
January 3, 2016	Regional Cities and Stellar Communities Are Revolutionary PoliciesStellar Communities and the Regional Cities Initiative are leading Indiana’s economic development efforts into the 21st century.
November 15, 2015	Plans for the Regional Cities Initiative Are RevealingLet's briefly review the proposed initiatives.
July 19, 2015	Workers Aren’t CommoditiesEconomic development and business attraction are misunderstood.
June 28, 2015	Some Truth about Hoosier School BudgetsToday’s funding is tied to students, not schools.
March 1, 2015	We Need to Study, Modify and Preserve TIFIn the coming months we must better understand the characteristics of good and bad TIFs using data, not just anecdote.
January 25, 2015	Rockport Bill Is a Net Job KillerThough it may create jobs locally, this plan likely would increase tax costs and decrease jobs statewide.
October 5, 2014	More Wisdom in Tax Increment FinancingThe arrival of new sporting goods store raises questions about local government policy.
October 11, 2010	The Drivers License Odyssey…previously licensed to drive an M1 Tank and various smaller tracked and wheeled vehicles. Obtaining an Indiana license, he thought, would be easy. It was not.

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Commentaries tagged with state and local government