Next 10’s new report analyzes electricity productivity – how much GDP manufacturers produce for every dollar spent on electricity – and finds that California generates $59 in GDP for every dollar spent on electricity, compared to $38 for the rest of the nation, leading every other state except Connecticut.
Today Common Good released Two Years, Not Ten Years: Redesigning Infrastructure Approvals, our new report on the costs of delaying infrastructure permits. The report concludes that a permitting delay of six years on public projects costs the nation over $3.7 trillion, more than double the $1.7 trillion needed through the end of this decade to modernize America’s decrepit infrastructure.
The report notes that the state’s renewable-energy mandates and carbon cap-and-trade program have forced electricity prices to rise, as they have implemented a “regressive energy tax, imposing proportionally higher costs in certain counties, such as California’s inland and Central Valley regions, where summer electricity consumption is highest but household incomes are lowest.”
For many decades, San Diego leaders held a vision of progress that we would argue is a narrow one–focused on a limited set of industries and built on a fragmented social and economic landscape. As a result, lines both literal and metaphorical have divided the region at every level
In this report, the Institute for Applied Economics of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) conducts a regional dependency study of the refinery industry, evaluating the ripple effect of a potential reduction of supply of refined petroleum products and byproducts in California.
Productivity growth is central to a range of economic questions from the slowdown in middleclass incomes in recent decades to the outperformance of employment over output in the current recovery. Looking forward, productivity growth is essential to understanding how quickly wages can grow, how fast the economy can grow, and the magnitude—and potentially even the existence—of a long-term fiscal gap.
The extent of income inequality in any region such as the Bay Area is a result of local, state and national policies, and is exacerbated by economic factors such as technological progress and globalization. And, while local policies alone are largely inadequate to address the issue of extreme inequality, there are a variety of options that can ameliorate the effects. This report includes data on Bay Area income inequality, comparisons to the state and nation, a discussion of the root causes of inequality, and a set of local policy options.
Policymakers often consider temporarily redistributing income from rich to poor households to stimulate the economy. This is based in part on the idea that poor households spend a larger share of their income than rich ones do. However, ample evidence suggests that the difference in spending between these groups is significantly smaller than commonly assumed. A second assumption is that redistribution through policy is more efficient than through capital markets. Whether this is true is important to consider when proposing this type of stimulus policy.
Electric vehicles offer the promise of reduced environmental externalities relative to their gasoline counterparts. We combine a theoretical discrete-choice model of new vehicle purchases, an econometric analysis of the marginal emissions from electricity, and the AP2 air pollution model to estimate the environmental benefit of electric vehicles. First, we find considerable variation in the environmental benefit, implying a range of second-best electric vehicle purchase subsidies from $3025 in California to -$4773 in North Dakota, with a mean of -$742. Second, over ninety percent of local environmental externalities from driving an electric vehicle in one state are exported to others, implying that electric vehicles may be subsidized locally, even though they may lead to negative environmental benefits overall. Third, geographically differentiated subsidies can reduce deadweight loss, but only modestly. Fourth, the current federal purchase subsidy of $7500 has greater deadweight loss than a no-subsidy policy.
Conventional wisdom suggests that energy efficiency (EE) policies are beneficial because they induce investments that pay for themselves and lead to emissions reductions. However, this belief is primarily based on projections from engineering models. This paper reports on the results of an experimental evaluation of the nation’s largest residential EE program conducted on a sample of more than 30,000 households. The findings suggest that the upfront investment costs are about twice the actual energy savings. Further, the model-projected savings are roughly 2.5 times the actual savings. While this might be attributed to the “rebound” effect – when demand for energy end uses increases as a result of greater efficiency – the paper fails to find evidence of significantly higher indoor temperatures at weatherized homes. Even when accounting for the broader societal benefits of energy efficiency investments, the costs still substantially outweigh the benefits; the average rate of return is approximately -9.5% annually.
In this report, we present a number of suggestions for practical reform to patent policy consistent with the original public meaning of the Patent Clause, which will foster more innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth.
To bring the pavement condition and essential components such as storm drains, gutters, sidewalks and curbs of local streets and roads to a level of Best Management Practices (BMP), there needs to be an additional investment of $8.22 billion dollars annually over the next ten years.
In this report, the Volcker Alliance examines in detail the budgeting practices of California, New Jersey and Virginia, assessing the effectiveness of each state’s practices. The report highlights the need for effective and transparent budgeting practices by “shining a spotlight on opaque and confusing practices and by identifying more appropriate approaches” when creating state budgets and fiscal policy.
Some local ordinances in particular include an exemption for employers that enter into a collective bargaining agreement with a union. This “escape clause” is often designed to encourage unionization by making a labor union the potential “low-cost” alternative to new wage mandates, and it raises serious questions about whom these minimum wage laws are actually intended to benefit.
The report analyzes the Southern California and national “Trade and Goods Movement” industry, related infrastructure projects, and related issues such as real estate needed for industry growth. The report delves into the specifics of LA County’s top international trading partners, including a forecast for economic activity related to trade. The report also provides analysis of employment related to this key piece of the Los Angeles County regional economy.