A little humor for the day via Krugman Blog..
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One idea we've championed in the past is the creation of a trust fund for economic development and diversification funded through an increase in West Virginia's severance tax levied on coal and natural gas extraction. But would raising the severance tax make it too expensive to mine coal or drill for natural gas in West Virginia, and…
I've talked before about the relationship (or lack thereof) between the level of business taxation and economic growth in the states, concluding that things like quality public services, access to markets and inputs, and a quality workforce all matter more to economic growth and prosperity than taxes. But there is another argument out there that is closely related to the business…
Friday morning's news that there was no job growth in the month of August sent disappointment throughout the country, and stoked fears that another recession may be around the corner. The meager 17,000 private sector jobs added were offset by an equal loss of public sector workers, as state and local governments continued to make cutbacks. A…
While economists point to December 2007 as the official beginning of the national recession, and to June 2009 as the official end, that doesn't mean that each state was impacted by the recession only during that stretch of time. In fact, when it comes to jobs, when each state began to feel the affects of the…
The West Virginia Department of Commerce recently posted a "success story" featuring Paul Lambert, president of STaSIS Engineering, an auto service company that moved from California to West Virginia in 2009, and is planning to expand. So why did Mr. Lambert move his company to West Virginia? Isn't our business personal property tax a job killer? Aren't we out of…
In Thursday's edition of the Charleston Gazette, gubernatorial candidate Bill Maloney echoed a familiar refrain, arguing that the state needs to reduce its business taxes to achieve economic growth, citing "supply-side economics." It's an issue I've discussed before, and the latest evidence continues to confirm that low business taxes are not associated with stronger economic growth, nor do they make…
Berkley economist Brad Delong has repeatedly said that "It is a fact that if congress simply goes home--doesn't do anything for the next 10 years except keep the federal government on autopilot--that we do not have a long run deficit problem." While this may sound counter-intuitive, especially given the recent media hype sorrounding raising the…
In the New York Times this weekend there was an interesting article about the Gallup Economic Confidence Index, which measure's people's confidence about the economy. The index is created through two poll questions, one which asks respondents if the current economic conditions are excellent, good, fair, or poor, and whether the economy is getting better or worse.…
If you've read a newspaper, visited an airport, or driven on the highway lately, you've probably noticed a billboard or advertisement or two blaming the EPA for destroying coal jobs or creating a no job zone through environmental regulations. The supposed effects of the "war on coal" are not limited to Appalachia either, as U.S.…