Business Commons^™

Public Policy, Economic Development, And Taxes: An Impact Analysis Of Business Incentive Strategies At The State And Local Level, Richard Nanney

All Dissertations

In an effort to promote economic development, state-level policymakers have exercised discretion over the use of public money to incentivize subsidy packages for decades. Estimates suggest state governments spend approximately $50 billion annually on these initiatives. However, there has been little empirical research about the political and economic benefits received by local residents from these subsidy programs. This dissertation analyzes the effectiveness of state subsidy policy by considering induced economic spillover effects and population attrition rates. It examines how subsidy distribution is related to employment rates, average weekly wages, and population attrition. The project offers two methodological innovations. First, to …

Improving Energy Stewardship At Michigan Technological University’S Athletic Complexes, Cynthia L. Pindral

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Athletics departments are showcases for universities, serving as a public face and recruitment outlet that communicates university identity to the world. This applied research project examines the state of electrical energy infrastructure at Michigan Technological University with special attention to the Athletic Department and reports on the process for energy decisions in both settings. I take a qualitative research approach analyzing University documents and conducting interviews with informants in Athletics Administration, Facilities, and MTU’s Office of Sustainability and Resilience. Four major barriers to efficiency emerged: (1) lack of University-wide climate action goals, (2) staffing issues due to a large number …

A Comprehensive Analysis Of The Pennsylvania Wine Industry With Actionable Recommendations For Industry Improvement And Growth, Seth Porter

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Local wine industries are vital engines of agricultural economic growth, rural development, and sustainable long-term tax base creation. While the Pennsylvania wine industry has made admirable progress, the industry still has a poor collective reputation, high variance in product quality differential, and a perceived regulatory environment that creates negative externalities for local wine, agricultural production, and auxiliary enterprises. This comprehensive analysis attempts to diagnose and remedy all primary public policy, regulatory, state, non-profit, and non-state private actions that have impeded the Pennsylvania wine industry. A methodology of grounded theory qualitative processes, furthered by texting mining and document analysis techniques, were …

Evaluating The Impact Of Off-Farm Decisions On Federal Government Program Utilization And Financial Success For Missouri's Beginning Farmers, Lyndsey Ann Parker

MSU Graduate Theses

Farmers and ranchers will have to increase production by approximately 70% by the year 2050 according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (2017). People in the agriculture industry face several challenges from start-up costs to limited land availability (Ahearn, 2011). There are federal and state government programs available to assist with some of these challenges but bring their own hardships as well. This study measures off-farm decisions that affect financial performance and utilization of government programs for Missouri’s farmers and ranchers. Three types of financial performance of Missouri farms are prioritized in this study, liquidity (current ratio), solvency (debt-to-asset ratio), …

Evaluating The Entrepreneurship Ecosystem In Stockton, California, Angelina Abella

Master's Projects

In any community, entrepreneurs and small business owners play an important role in the fabric of the community. The concept of “community wealth-building” is the idea that cooperatives, Community Development Financial Institutes (CDFIs), impact investors, and local governments, can “...strengthen locally-rooted and locally-held businesses and investing vehicles…” (Field, 2015, n.p.). It is believed that keeping businesses local results in “...more local tax revenue, more local business activity and more local employment” (Field, 2015, n.p.).

Therefore, supporting an entrepreneur may contribute to the overall quality of life of the community by supporting them, their families, and their employees. This can be …