Washington slips to 11th place in Forbes business climate rankings
Last week Forbes released its annual list of the best states for business. Washington fell out of the top 10, coming in at No. 11 for 2012. We’ve been sliding since ranking No. 2 in 2009. As we’ve written before, it’s a mistake to assign too much weight to any of these things. There’s always […]
December 12 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
Making tax incentives work for economic efficiency
My column this morning cites a recent New York Times series on tax incentives and their effects on state and local government revenues. The three part NYT report is here, here, and here. Without question, there have been some major boondoggles in the subsidy game routinely played as corporations and government officials attempt to land […]
December 11 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
Washington: Tops in new economy, tops in start-up ecosystems
New Economy: Washington does well. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation again finds Washington among the best states in its 2012 State New Economy Index. We come in No. 3, behind Massachusetts and Delaware. Washington state, in third place, scores high due not only to its strength in software aviation, but also because of the entrepreneurial hotbed of […]
December 11 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
November 11 – December 10 state revenues were $72.7 million more than expected
The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council released its monthly Economic and Revenue Update today. For the November 11–December 10 collection “month,” revenue was well above forecast. However, it is likely that much of the excess will be reversed next month. From the summary: Major General Fund-State revenue collections for the November 11 – December 10, […]
November 19 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
Monthly jobs report shows 6,700 gain for October in Washington
(Originally posted on 11/15/2012) According to preliminary estimates prepared by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and released today by the state Employment Security Department (ESD), Washington’s economy gained 6,700 jobs between the September and October reporting periods. The preliminary estimate of the October unemployment rate for the state is 8.2 percent. The estimate of […]
November 19 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
Flat revenue forecast, 4-year budget outlook remains grim
The official state revenue forecast released today is little changed from the September report. Overall changes to the revenue forecast are slight. Forecasted revenue for the current biennium has been increased by $8 million, with a $31 million positive variance in collections since the September forecast partially offset by a weaker forecast going forward. Forecasted […]
November 19 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
From fiscal cliff to affordable care act, plenty of post-election unfinished business
Remember when elections settled things? OK, I don’t either. But there’s more than the usual clutter of unresolved issues on the agenda this year. The Los Angeles Times has a nice roundup of the states of health care, as more Republican governors opt not to set up the state exchanges prescribed by the Affordable Care […]
October 25 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
New WRC Report: Washington's Prosperity Depends on Vibrant Tech Sector
The Research Council has posted a report titled “Washington’s Prosperity Depends on Vibrant Tech Sector,” which can be downloaded here. Briefly: Washington’s vibrant tech cluster has had a strong, positive effect on the state economy. The sector accounts for nearly two-thirds of Washington’s job growth since 1990 and more than half of the growth in […]
October 24 , 2012 - Emily Makings
New Brief: A Complex Maze of State and Local Laws and Regulations
As we have noted previously (see here and here), the state auditor’s office is working on a performance audit of the state regulatory system. So far, an inventory of state regulations and a report on communicating regulatory information and streamlining business rules have been completed. Two key points from the latter are: Ultimately, anything other […]
October 22 , 2012 - Emily Makings
New Brief: Labor Costs in Washington
In a new policy brief today, we take a general look at some aspects of labor costs in Washington. Unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation have been reformed recently by the legislature, but they remain costly compared to other states. Additionally, Washington’s minimum wage is the highest in the country, and laws regarding prevailing wage, paid […]