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March 28, 2012
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With the current law authorizing federal transportation spending set to expire on March 31 Congress has turned its’ attention to working out an extension which will continue to finance the country’s transportation needs. Earlier this month the Senate passed a two-year, $109 billion transportation bill but the House seems unlikely to approve. Whatever the final extension looks like it is important to consider the unique and evolving needs of America’s rural communities. The U.S. rural population is at an all-time low of just 16 percent and this population change has had an effect on the
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March 9, 2012
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The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its’ latest quarterly report on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) in February, covering employment and economic output from October 2011 through December 2011. Recipients of ARRA funds must complete and file regular reports on the number of jobs created by ARRA programs and activities. The CBO is required to comment quarterly on the figures which come from these reports. ARRA was passed in 2009 for the primary purpose of stimulating the economy and increasing employment in the United States. To accomplish these goals
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November 14, 2011
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Congressional funding for the 2012 Economic Census is at risk, with both the House and Senate proposals falling short of providing the necessary funds to carry out the survey. The Economic Census is conducted every five years and is an important tool which profiles the U.S. economy and provides valuable data to federal, state, and local governments. State and local governments use the data collected by the Economic Census for planning, analysis, and research purposes , including: Revenue forecasts; Workforce planning and development; Academic policy research. The Economic Census collects information from 5 million
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August 24, 2011
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Yesterday’s 5.8-magnitude earthquake that originated in central Virginia disrupted cell phone networks for several hours on Tuesday afternoon along much of the east coast. The event evoked memories of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which clogged networks on a much larger scale. Since public safety and commercial networks operate on the same spectrum the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a statement asking the public to utilize text messaging and email to communicate to keep the lines open for emergency responders. This random event highlights the need for state and local public safety
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June 21, 2011
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State and local fiscal conditions remain constrained as revenues have yet to return to 2008 levels. Compounding this problem is the fact that Medicaid costs keep growing at unsustainable rates, partly because of high unemployment rates and the increased demand for Medicaid services as individuals lose employer-based health insurance. Recently an expert panel discussed potential short-run and long-run tactics to manage the rising costs of Medicaid. Including: Howard Dean, 79th Governor of Vermont Nina Owcharenko, Director of the Center of Health Policy Studies, Heritage Foundation Robert Reischauer, President,
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