Metro Policy
The Stimulus: We Don’t Know What We Don’t Know
Congress seems intent on once again using infrastructure spending to address the nation’s rising unemployment. The real shame here is not whether this is--or isn’t--a good idea but that we don’t know one way or the other. READ MORE >>
Mission (Not) Accomplished
One Way to Rebuild America
As anyone who has used a passport recently knows, infrastructure in the United States has fallen well below world standards. Decades of underinvestment have taken their toll, fiscally hard-pressed states are cutting back, and the current system of federal appropriations for infrastructure projects precludes a coordinated approach that matches the scale of the problem and reflects national priorities. READ MORE >>
Local Government Finances: The Next Casualty?
State government budget problems have been a well-publicized element of the nation’s ongoing economic crisis. Less remarked upon has been a lower-profile meltdown: the nation’s soon-to-be ugly local government fiscal mess. And now it’s time to tune in. READ MORE >>
How the Recession’s Affecting Immigration
With U.S. unemployment at a 26-year high Americans will be feeling the economic downturn for some time. Immigration experts are seeing global signs of the recession in major shifts in U.S. immigration trends, especially at the high and low ends of the skills spectrum. Here are the most significant changes. READ MORE >>
A Recessionary Mirror Across the Pond
Having spent a good deal of our time examining the path of the downturn and recovery within America’s own metropolitan areas, it’s great to see other organizations doing the same--and doing it with cool technology. READ MORE >>
Innovation’s Conference Committee Hurdle
The Fun Factor of Commuter Behavior
A key tenet of public transit advocates has always been to provide commuters with choices beyond the single-occupant vehicle and also to price the true cost of drive alone travel. Then man the rational economic animal kicks in and theoretically chooses the cheaper, and greener, transit option. READ MORE >>
Can We Build Our Way to Reduced Carbon Emissions?
The House passed their climate change bill last spring, and the Senate Environmental and Public Works (EPW) Committee passed their version last week. It now moves on to the Finance Committee and perhaps Agriculture. It will be well into next year by the time the bill gets to the Senate floor. READ MORE >>
