03/28/2024

News

California Becoming More Feudal, With Ultra-Rich Lording Over Declining Middle Class

In the imaginations of its boosters, and for many outside the state, California is often seen as the role model for the future. But, sadly, California is also moving backward toward a more feudal society. Feudalism was about the concentration of wealth and power in a relative handful of people. Historically, California created fortunes for […]

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Far from fame, poverty blossoms in ‘forgotten California’

California may be famous for its wealth, but there is a distinctly different part of the state where poverty prevails: places like this one halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The Central Valley has long been short on resources no matter which political party is in power. Democratic and Republican candidates for Congress have […]

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Some Rural Areas Are Better for Economic Mobility

When it comes to economic mobility, the image that comes to mind is one of savvy, ambitious kids from the cities and suburbs of large superstar metro areas like New York, Boston, and San Francisco getting ahead, while children from more isolated, rural areas fall further and further behind. But this narrative is not borne […]

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Here’s how growing income disparity is changing the Bay Area

In the Bay Area, the poor are moving out, the wealthy are moving in and gentrification is picking up steam. The region had the highest income disparity between newcomers and out-going families of any major metro area in the country between 2010 and 2016, according to a new study by BuildZoom and UC Berkeley. The […]

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Hispanic Unemployment Rate Hits Lowest Level on Record in September

The national seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for Hispanics and Latinos in the U.S. labor force fell to the lowest level on record in September of 2018, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released Friday show. In September, the unemployment rate for Hispanics and Latinos, aged 16 and up, was 4.5%, tying July 2018 for the […]

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Can California’s next governor fix the state’s problems? It depends on Palo Alto

“The “birthplace of Silicon Valley” sits in Palo Alto’s 94301 ZIP Code — a wooden Craftsman one-car garage where 80 years ago the technology behemoth Hewlett-Packard was formed. Palo Alto has been seen as a technological vanguard ever since, a futurist playground brimming with programmers and engineers pioneering the next big breakthrough. But it’s not […]

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Bay Area becomes 4-million-job economy as hiring boom widens

For the first time in its history, the Bay Area has more than 4 million jobs, powered by a continuing economic boom in the nine-county region that in August produced the most robust month for hiring in more than two years, state labor reports revealed Friday. “It’s a great milestone for the Bay Area to […]

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Incomes Grew and the Official Poverty Rate Dropped in California in 2017, But Millions Still Struggle With Extremely Low Incomes

New Census figures released today show promising gains in income and employment for Californians, yet also show that millions of California residents are still struggling to get by on extremely low incomes. These data underscore the need for policymakers to ensure that the economy’s recent gains are shared among all Californians. The latest Census figures […]

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Housing prices are resegregating the Bay Area, UC Berkeley study finds

The Bay Area’s soaring housing costs are pushing poor people into neighborhoods where poverty and racial segregation are on the rise, a UC Berkeley study published Wednesday found. As a result, the region’s low-income families — particularly minority families — are increasingly cut off from relatives, their children may face worse health outcomes and parents’ […]

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The Prime-Age Workforce and Labor Market Polarization

U.S. labor force participation by people in their prime working years fell substantially during the Great Recession, and it remains depressed despite some recovery since 2015. This appears to reflect longer-term developments, rather than lingering effects from the recession. One key factor is labor market polarization—manifested in the gradual disappearance of manual jobs—which helps predict […]

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A generation plans an exodus from California

Our analysis? California is in danger of pricing itself out for moderate wage earners, and particularly families. Taxes, poor educational performance, congestion and signs of slowing growth are no doubt contributing factors. But the big enchilada in California — by far the largest source of distortion in living costs — is housing. Over 90 percent […]

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Incomes Rose and Poverty Rate Fell for Third Straight Year, Census Data Show

American incomes rose and poverty declined for the third consecutive year in 2017, according to census figures released Wednesday that suggest more Americans are benefiting from the robust economy. The new data, which provide a broad look at U.S. economic well-being, show that median household income increased to $61,372 last year, up 1.8% when adjusted […]

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The ‘Latino Factor’ Will Save America’s Economy

Labor Day is a chance to take a break from our routines and honor the contributions of those who have built America. But as we relax and reflect, we also ought to recognize that our celebrations may be short-lived: The U.S. is running out of workers. Baby boomers, who built the modern economic engine, are […]

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Poverty in California is getting better—except where it isn’t

California still has the nation’s highest poverty rate when you take into account the state’s high cost of living. But the number of people living in poverty here has dropped since the beginning of the decade. There were nearly 600,000 fewer impoverished Californians in 2016 than in 2011, according to the Public Policy Institute of […]

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Youth Unemployment Hits 52-Year Low

The unemployment rate among young Americans fell to its lowest level in more than 50 years this summer, though the share of young people looking for work remained well below its peak in 1989. Of Americans between 16 and 24 years old actively looking for work this summer, 9.2% were unemployed in July, the Labor […]

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