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Full-Text Articles in Economic Policy

Clusters And Strategy In Regional Economic Development, Edward Feser Dec 2009

Clusters And Strategy In Regional Economic Development, Edward Feser

Edward J Feser

Many economic development practitioners view cluster theory and analysis as constituting a general approach to strategy making in economic development, which may lead them to prioritize policy and planning interventions that cannot address the actual development challenges in their cities and regions. This paper discusses the distinction between strategy formation and strategic planning, where the latter is the programming of development strategies that are identified through a blend of experience, intuition, and analysis. Cluster theories and analytical tools can provide useful informational inputs into a strategy making effort and they can also be helpful for programming specific interventions (i.e., strategic …


Evaluating Economic Development Programs Using Matched Employee‐Employer Data In A Quasi‐ Experimental Framework, Henry C. Renski Nov 2009

Evaluating Economic Development Programs Using Matched Employee‐Employer Data In A Quasi‐ Experimental Framework, Henry C. Renski

Henry C Renski

In the wake of shrinking public coffers, policy makers are demanding greater accountability from their economic development initiatives. In a discipline known for ‘claiming anything that falls,’ attempts to objectively evaluate economic development programs have been stymied by ill-suited data sources and methods. Survey research is expensive and responding firms have an incentive to lie about the effectiveness of subsidies. Publicly available data on employment, wages, and other outcomes are highly aggregated and lack the power to capture impacts from anything other than the most dramatic, large-scale initiatives. Confidential employee- and establishment-level (micro) data holds considerable promise for more rigorous …


State Finance In Times Of Crisis, Brian Galle, Jonathan Klick Sep 2009

State Finance In Times Of Crisis, Brian Galle, Jonathan Klick

All Faculty Scholarship

As recent events illustrate, state finances are pro-cyclical: during recessions, state revenues crash, worsening the effects of economic downturns. This problem is well-known, yet persistent. We argue here that, in light of predictable federalism and political economy dynamics, states will be unable to change this situation on their own. Additionally, we note that many possible federal remedies may result in worse problems, such as creating moral hazard that would induce states to take on excessively risky policy, both fiscal and otherwise. Thus, we argue that policy makers should consider so-called “automatic” stabilizers, such as are found in the federal tax …


Stepping Up: Managing Diversity In Challenging Times, Carol Hardy-Fanta Jan 2009

Stepping Up: Managing Diversity In Challenging Times, Carol Hardy-Fanta

Publications from the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy

Since its launch in 2008, Commonwealth Compact has grown steadily, employing several strategies to promote diversity statewide. The Benchmarks initiative has collected data, analyzed in this report, on a significant portion of the state workforce. Guided by Stephen Crosby, dean of the McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at UMass Boston, Commonwealth Compact has conducted newsmaking surveys of public opinion and of boards of directors statewide. In addition, it has convened ongoing coalitions with its higher education partners, and established a collaborative of local business schools aimed specifically at increasing faculty diversity. The Compact has sponsored or co-sponsored …


The Effects Of Tort Reform On Medical Malpractice Insurers’ Ultimate Losses, Patricia Born, W. Kip Viscusi, Tom Baker Jan 2009

The Effects Of Tort Reform On Medical Malpractice Insurers’ Ultimate Losses, Patricia Born, W. Kip Viscusi, Tom Baker

All Faculty Scholarship

Whereas the literature evaluating the effect of tort reforms has focused on reported incurred losses, this paper examines the long run effects using a comprehensive sample by state of individual firms writing medical malpractice insurance from 1984-2003. The long run effects of reforms are greater than insurers' expected effects, as five year developed losses and ten year developed losses are below the initially reported incurred losses for those years following reform measures. The quantile regressions show the greatest effects of joint and several liability limits, noneconomic damages caps, and punitive damages reforms for the firms that are at the high …


The Legal Origins Theory In Crisis, Lisa Fairfax Jan 2009

The Legal Origins Theory In Crisis, Lisa Fairfax

All Faculty Scholarship

The Legal Origins Theory purports to predict how countries respond to economic and social problems. Specifically, the legal origins of the United States should strongly influence the manner it approaches economic problems and its approach should be distinct from the response of civil law countries. If the theory is accurate, America's legal tradition should have a profound impact on its response to the crisis. This Article seeks to test the boundaries of the theory by assessing whether it could have predicted the manner the U.S. responded to the current economic crisis. After analyzing the U.S. response to the crisis, this …