South By North Strategies, Ltd.

South by North’s Quinterno Awarded Fellowship

John Quinterno of South by North Strategies, Ltd. recently was named as one of 54 Americans selected to receive a Marshall Memorial Fellowship for 2010.

Sponsored by the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the fellowship provides emerging American and European leaders with an opportunity to develop extensive knowledge of the political, economic, and social institutions and issues that are shaping individual societies and Trans-Atlantic affairs.

American fellows participate in a 24-day overseas travel program that starts in Brussels, Belgium, and proceeds through four other European cities. The visits provide fellows with an opportunity to learn about the institutions, issues, and people that drive Europe’s cities, regions, counties, and multilateral systems.

Quinterno is one of 54 Americans recently selected for the  fellowship program, which now is in its 28th year of existence. 2010 Fellows come from 18 states and the District of Columbia.

More specifically, Quinterno is one of four North Carolinians named as fellows. While the German Marshall Fund of the United States organizes and funds the fellowship programs, North Carolina fellows are selected by the International Affairs Council of North Carolina, a nonprofit organization based in Raleigh.

Click here to read the press release announcing the 2010 American fellows.

Building a Foundation for Family Economic Success

To document the policy successes achieved by its 25 state partners, The Working Poor Families Project (WPFP) retained South by North Strategies, Ltd. to write and design a report documenting accomplishments between 2002 and 2009.

Entitled Building a Foundation for Family Economic Success, the report found that the WPFP’s state partners have helped generate or preserve over $2.5 billion in state investments in low-income working families. In the process, these organizations have brought the concerns of low-income working families into an array of policy debates.

The WPFP is a national initiative to strengthen state policies and programs influencing the advancement of low-income working families. Specifically, the WPFP  strives to shape state policies related to postsecondary education and training for adults, economic development practices, and work supports and social insurance.

By describing the WPFP’s distinctive process of policy change, the new report shows how the WPFP positions state-based nonprofit organizations to champion investments in working families. Consequently, low-income working families in many states are better able to obtain financial aid, increase their education and skills, access good jobs, and make ends meet.

Click here to view a webcast in which the report’s findings are discussed.

Unemployment Claims in NC: Week of 10/31

For the benefit week ending on October 31st, 18,795 North Carolinians filed initial claims for unemployment insurance, and 180,051 individuals applied for continuing insurance benefits. Compared to the prior week, there were more initial and continuing claims. These figures come from data released today by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Averaging new and continuing claims over a four-week period — a process that helps adjust for seasonal fluctuations and better illustrates trends — shows that an average of 17,715 initial claims were filed over the last four weeks, along with an average of 179,943 continuing claims. Compared to the previous four-week period, initial claims were slightly higher and continuing claims were slightly lower.

One year ago, the four-week average for initial claims stood at   18,613 and the four-week average of continuing claims equaled 118,839.

The graph shows the changes in unemployment insurance claims (as a share of covered employment) in North Carolina since the recession’s start in December 2007.

Although new and continuing claims appear to have peaked for this cycle, the claims levels remain elevated and point to a labor market that remains extremely weak.

Bleak Budget Outlook

The newest economic and revenue report prepared by the staff of the NC General Assembly suggests that joblessness and budget shortfalls will trouble North Carolina well into the foreseeable future.

Among the report’s disturbing findings are the following:

• As of October, state tax collections are running $95 million (or 1.5 percent) below target. After adjusting for changes in the tax code, revenues are down four percent compared to the previous year.
• Sales tax collections continue to plunge and are down 11.7 percent compared to the prior year.
• Withholding tax collections also are declining but are moving in line with projections.
• An employment rebound is essential to any long-term economic and revenue recovery; unfortunately, few signs point to such growth and “a robust expansionary recovery is still a year or two away.”

Around the Dial – Nov. 18

Economic policy reports, blog postings, and media stories of interest:

• The Triangle Business Journal looks at changes in metro housing prices.
• At Project Syndicate, Nouriel Roubini assesses the US’s economic weaknesses.
• The NY Times’ Paul Krugman wonders about “the madness of inflation hawks.”
• The Wall Street Journal looks at the FCC’s ideas for expanding broadband access.