Search Results
Discussion Paper
Regional Job Openings and Quits Rates Jolt to New Highs
Discussion Paper
State Revenues Hit Hard by COVID-19
The measures taken to slow the spread of COVID-19 have not only led to a sharp decline in employment and an unprecedented rise in unemployment but have negatively impacted state and local governments that depend on income and sales taxes as primary sources of revenue.
Discussion Paper
Have Some Rural Areas Turned the Tide on Population Decline?
According to the most recent county population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, almost half of the Fifth District counties in rural areas or small towns (those with a Rural-Urban Continuum Code (RUCC) of 3-9 and henceforth referred to as "rural") experienced population growth between 2020 and 2023. (See here for more on our use of these definitions for urban and rural.) That figure may seem low considering that nearly three-quarters of urban counties saw population growth over the same period. But what's notable about the growth in these rural counties is that more than half of them ...
Journal Article
District Digest: Transportation Access as a Barrier to Work
Lack of a car can be a barrier to employment, particularly for low-income individuals. According to a 2022 survey conducted by the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, almost 20 percent of individuals in that state who were able to work but were not currently working cited transportation as a barrier. Many studies have shown that ownership of a car (or a truck or motorcycle) increases the probability of work, especially among welfare recipients. And low-income individuals are the least likely to own a car and therefore must rely on other means of transportation, such as ...
Discussion Paper
Lagging Labor Force Participation in Maryland and Virginia
By July 2022, the U.S. had officially regained the jobs lost in the pandemic, the unemployment rate matched its pre-pandemic low, and the size of the labor force (the sum of employed and unemployed looking for work) was almost back to its pre-pandemic level. The same was true for many states in the Fifth District. Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia had recovered nearly all the jobs lost in February and March of 2020, while North and South Carolina had more than fully recovered. Unemployment rates were at or below pre-pandemic rates across much of the Fifth District as well.
Discussion Paper
April Update: The Coronavirus and Firms in the Fifth Dis
Over the past several weeks, social distancing and shutdowns have impacted our economy. Fifth District firms continued to tell us how COVID-19 has affected their business operations in recent surveys.
Discussion Paper
What Businesses are Saying About the COVID Crisis
While the majority of businesses surveyed have suffered some negative effects and loss of revenue as result of the COVID-19 crisis, most firms remained open and operating, at least partially, when surveyed.While the majority of businesses surveyed have suffered some negative effects and loss of revenue as result of the COVID-19 crisis, most firms remained open and operating, at least partially, when surveyed.
Journal Article
Definitions Matter: The Rural-Urban Dichotomy
District Digest article titled: Definitions Matter: The Rural-Urban Dichotomy