South By North Strategies, Ltd.

Remembrance Of Things Past

The combination of Labor Day and the respective political conventions makes this reflection on economic change in America, courtesy of The Wire, especially relevant.

An Overlooked Fact

The Progressive Pulse highlights an overlooked fact in the ongoing partisan wrangling over raising the top two marginal federal income tax brackets.

Everyone will continue to receive some tax cut under either the Senate or House plan; even those families with incomes over $250,000 will still keep their tax cuts on the portion of their income below that quarter-million-dollar threshold.  These middle-income tax cuts promote consumer spending, allowing more middle-class families to support small businesses as paying customers, in turn providing these companies with additional revenues to increase profits and hire more workers. Higher-income families, on the other hand, tend to save, rather spend additional income resulting from tax breaks, in turn weakening the ability of these tax cuts to promote investment and job creation.

Reports Trace Recession and Recovery In NC

CHAPEL HILL (September 4, 2012) – The Global Research Institute of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has released two policy reports that explore aspects of the economic recession in North Carolina and the state’s path toward recovery. Both reports draw  on data compiled by South by North Strategies, Ltd., a research firm specializing in economic and social policy.

North Carolina’s labor market has struggled since late 2007, and regardless of the outcome of Election 2012, the state’s next governor and legislature will face complicated choices regarding how best to steer the state toward economic prosperity. To help inform that process, the Global Research Institute convened several meetings of civic leaders drawn from diverse backgrounds and sectors during the first half of 2012.

Those discussions culminated in the development of two policy reports that combine social and economic data with the perspectives solicited at the meetings. The reports pay special attention to issues related to the labor market, workforce development, and higher education.

The first report, entitled Recession and Recovery in North Carolina: A Data Snapshot, 2007-12, presents a wealth of data tracing changes in the state’s labor market over the past 4.5 years and discusses key ways in which the “Great Recession” has altered the state’s labor market.

The second report, entitled Moving Beyond Plato Versus Plumbing: Individualized Education and Career Passways for All North Carolinians, contextualizes current state-level policy debates regarding post-secondary education, analyzes future occupational requirements, and presents recommendations for helping young people with diverse talents succeed in today’s labor market.

Recession And Recovery In North Carolina

North Carolina’s labor market has struggled since late 2007. Consequently, the state’s next governor and legislature will face complicated choices regarding how best to steer the state back onto a path toward prosperity. To help inform that process, the Global Research Institute of the University of North Carolina commissioned South by North Strategies, Ltd.  to compile social and economic data tracing the state’s journey from recession to recovery between 2007 and 2012.

The research contributed to two policy reports. The first document, entitled Recession and Recovery in North Carolina: A Data Snapshot, 2007-12, explores significant ways in which the “Great Recession” has altered North Carolina’s labor market. The second report, entitled Moving Beyond Plato Versus Plumbing, discusses and contextualizes current policy debates over post-secondary education, analyzes occupational projections, and presents recommendations for helping young people with diverse talents succeed in today’s labor market.

Both reports were featured at the forum “Red States and Purple States: A Roundtable for Journalists,” which was organized by the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication and which took place on September 2, 2012 in Charlotte, North Carolina, in advance of the Democratic National Convention.

Editor’s Note

Policy Points is taking a few days off to enjoy the Labor Day holiday. Regular posting will resume on Wednesday, September 5, 2012. Thanks for your interest in the blog.