Wisconsin continues to lag the other regional economies
Category Archives: Wisconsin
Wisconsin January Private Nonfarm Payroll Employment Flat
The rest of the Nation continues to grow.
The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development has released preliminary January employment figures, incorporating incorporating backward revisions to earlier months’ data. [1]
Estimated Gross State Product for Wisconsin and Minnesota
Ed Hanson argues that 2013 Gross State Product (GSP) data for 2013 will show a Wisconsin renaissance:
Elevating the Minimum Wage, in Wisconsin and the Nation
With update links to CBO and the CEA comment on the minimum wage.
Despite the likely benefits, policymakers in Wisconsin make statements such as the following (from Fox6Now):
“I’m not a big supporter of artificially increasing the minimum wage. I think the marketplace is a much better way to go,” [Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin] Vos said.
Assessing the Widening Wisconsin-US Gap
The cumulative growth gap since January 2011 between the US and Wisconsin coincident indices was 2.2% in December. The forecast indicates a continued widening to 2.8% in six months time.
Wisconsin’s State of the State
Governor Walker delivered his State of the State address tonight (video here). From the press release:
“Tonight, we are laying out a plan to move Wisconsin further down the road to prosperity,” Governor Walker said. “Our friends and neighbors are going back to work and job creators are expanding their businesses. Thanks to sound fiscal management, I am proud to announce further tax relief for Wisconsinites and additional funding for worker training. We will continue to work diligently until everyone who wants a job can find a job.”
Per Capita Income: Wisconsin vs. Minnesota
From Davey, “Twinned Cities Now Following Different Paths,” NY Times today:
“It’s staggering, really, like night and day,” said Lawrence R. Jacobs, a political scientist at the University of Minnesota. “You’ve got two states with the same history, the same culture, the same people — it’s kind of like they’re cousins. And now they’re looking across the border and seeing one world, then seeing something else entirely on the other side.”
Wisconsin Employment in November
Figure 1 shows private employment relative to trend implied by Governor Walker’s pledge of August 2013 to create 250,000 net new jobs; Figure 2 shows employment normalized to January 2011 for Wisconsin, as compared to Minnesota and the Nation.
Coincident Indices for Wisconsin, Minnesota, California and the US
The Philadelphia Fed coincident indices for October are out. Figure 1 presents the log series, normalized to January 2011 = 0.
Wisconsin Employment: October 2013
Two numbers to remember: 84 thousand and 107 thousand