Public Policy Commons^™

The Black Progress Index In Mountain West Metropolitan Statistical Areas (Msas), Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet examines data from the Brookings Institution report, “Black Progress Index: Examining Social Factors That Influence Black Well-Being” authored by Andre Perry and Jonathan Rothwell in September 2022. The Black Progress Index (BPI) score is constructed using data and social factors that impact life expectancy for Black Americans. This fact sheet compares the BPI with the actual life expectancy of Black people in Mountain West metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). This fact sheet also examines each of the 13 variables included in the original report to present the BPI in the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV MSA.

Best And Worst States To Work In The Mountain West, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet explores workplace index rankings for the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah from the 2022 Oxfam survey “The Best and Worst States to Work in America.”

The Transaction Costs Of Federal Environmental Policy Changes: The Effects Of The Temporary Covid-19 Cwa Rollback On Local Water Systems, Jesse Lee Barnes

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

An institutional dilemma exists between the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). US surface waters are protected from point-source pollution by the CWA. Community Water Systems (CWSs) that draw from these surface waters for potable purposes are required to treat that water to a level that meets SDWA health standards. Therefore, decreases in CWA regulations could lead to surface water quality declines and, thus, higher SDWA compliance costs for CWSs. This area of inquiry has become increasingly relevant due to Trump-era executive actions to try to decrease the federal government's role in multiple environmental policies, …

Refugee Arrivals In The Mountain West, Fy 2021-2022, Saha Salahi, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet explores data on the influx of refugee arrivals by nation to the Mountain West region: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. Refugee Processing Center data, selected from annual reports and limited to the years 2021-2022, are presented in this factsheet.

Police Funding In The Mountain West, 2020-2022, Lana Kojoian, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Criminal Justice

This fact sheet examines data from Third Way’s report “The Red City Defund Police Problem” which provides information on police funding and other metrics on police forces. The original report offers a review of police funding and operating budgets for the 25 largest Democrat-run cities and 25 largest Republican-run cities in the U.S. This fact sheet includes police force data for 10 Mountain West cities (Aurora, CO; Chandler, AZ; Colorado Springs, CO; Denver, CO; Glendale, AZ; Gilbert, AZ; Las Vegas, NV; Mesa, AZ; North Las Vegas, NV; and Phoenix, AZ).

Physician Workforce In The Mountain West, Hira Ahmed, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

Using data from the Association of American Medical College’s State Physician Workforce Data Report, this fact sheet synthesizes Mountain West data on the numbers of active physicians and active physician demographics in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. This fact sheet focuses on active physicians in the Mountain West region by gender, race and ethnicity, as well as the number of students pursuing medical and premedical education.

Electric Utility Performance In The Mountain West, Hira Ahmed, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet examines select data from the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) report, “Electric Utility Performance: A State-By-State Review,” which provides information on the affordability, reliability, and environmental responsibility of electric utility energy consumption. The original report provides a comprehensive state-by-state profile of utility performance in the United States. These data were originally reported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) of the U.S. Department of Energy. This federal entity is responsible for the aggregation and dissemination of information about the American energy industry. This fact sheet highlights energy sources, affordability, reliability, and environmental impact of energy consumption in the Mountain …

Household Spending And Bill Payment In The Mountain West, 2022, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Cities & Metros

This fact sheet examines data from doxoINSIGHTS’ report “United States of Bill Pay: 50 Largest U.S. Cities Household Spend Report 2022” which provides information on the $4.6 trillion U.S. consumer bill pay market. Data are included for the average monthly cost per household and market share of the top ten bill categories in the Mountain West states (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico) and the six largest Mountain West cities (Denver, CO; Colorado Springs, CO; Las Vegas, NV; Phoenix, AZ; Tucson, AZ; and Albuquerque, NM) based on number of households. This fact sheet also examines the average monthly cost of …

Recycling In The Mountain West, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet synthesizes data on rates of recycling from the March 2021 report "50 States of Recycling," sponsored by the Ball Corporation.The information presented in this document focuses on the effectiveness of recycling in total and by recyclable item, as well as the quantity of product recycled specifically within the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Dynamic Micropolitans In The Mountain West, 2015-2021, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Cities & Metros

This fact sheet examines data exploring micropolitan ranking, gross domestic product (GDP) growth, employment growth, and average annual pay growth for micropolitan areas in the Mountain West. The original report includes economic growth data on 536 micropolitan areas across the United States from 2015 to 2021.

Education Gender Gaps In The Mountain West, 2022, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Lana Kojoian, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines data from the Brookings Institution publication “Boys Left Behind: Education Gender Gaps Across the U.S.” authored by Brookings Senior Fellow Richard V. Reeves and Research Analyst Ember Smith. The original report includes data on gender gaps in college degree attainment, high school graduation rates, and test scores throughout the U.S. This fact sheet highlights the percentage of women and men with college degrees, percentage of women and men graduating on time, Math and English test score gender gaps, and rankings of education gender gaps in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and …

Of Boys And Men: Why The Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, And What To Do About It, Richard Reeves

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

Boys and men are struggling. Profound economic and social changes of recent decades have many losing ground in the classroom, the workplace, and in the family. While the lives of women have changed, the lives of many men have remained the same or even deteriorated. Our attitudes, our institutions, and our laws have failed to keep up. Conservative and progressive politicians, mired in their own ideological warfare, fail to provide thoughtful solutions.

The father of three sons, a journalist, and a Brookings Institution scholar, Richard V. Reeves has spent twenty-five years worrying about boys both at home and work. His …

Household Food Security In The Mountain West, 2021, Zachary Walusek, Corryn Richardson, Issac Hernandez-Alcaraz, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet examines data on household food security published by the United States Department of Agriculture. We examine the prevalence of household food insecurity and very low food security in Mountain West states (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) and the United States national average for comparative analysis.

The Shrinking Geography Of Housing Opportunity In Mountain West Metros, 2022, Hira Ahmed, Joshua Padilla, Saha Salahi, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet examines data from the National Equity Atlas on the changing geography of opportunity across Mountain West metros. The original report includes data on the largest 100 metros in the United States. This fact sheet reports on the overall percentages of affordable zip codes in nine major metropolitan areas in the Mountain West and changes in affordable zip codes for Black, Latinx, and white households in Mountain West metros from 2013 to 2019. Data for nine Mountain West metros are included: Tucson, AZ; Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ; Colorado Springs, CO; Denver-Aurora, CO; Albuquerque, NM; Las Vegas-Paradise, NV; Ogden-Clearfield, UT; Provo-Orem, …

Prescription Drug Retail Sales In The Mountain West, Caren Royce Yap, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet synthesizes data on prescription drug retail sales in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah). "Retail Sales for Prescription Drugs Filled at Pharmacies by Payer," a 2019 report by the Kaiser Family Foundation, includes data on the amount of retail sales for prescription drugs made in each state by dollar amount, along with the method of coverage, including commercial, Medicare, Medicaid and cash payment.

Exploring Gaps In City Climate Planning In The Mountain West, Joshua Padilla, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet explores data from the 2022 Brookings Institution report by Joseph W. Kane, Adie Tomer, Caroline George, and Jamal Russell Black called “Not according to plan: Exploring gaps in city climate planning and the need for regional action." The original report analyzes decarbonization plans for 50 of the largest U.S. cities and comparatively ranks each plan using a point system of 5 categories. This fact sheet focuses on Mountain West cities (Denver, CO; Phoenix, AZ; Las Vegas, NV; Salt Lake, UT; and Albuquerque, NM) included in the original study.

Municipal Waste In Southern Nevada: Understanding The Obsession With Garbage, Zachary Billot

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

This policy brief will analyze the current state of municipal waste, both residential and commercial, in Clark County Nevada. Southern Nevada’s reliance on inexpensive disposal of waste results in lack of support for sustainable investment in waste diversion programs. Clark County lags significantly behind the US in terms of recycling processing due to problems related to collection of materials and limited programs that divert food waste in a city reliant on casinos that dispose tons of food per day. A multifactor approach which includes education, investment in waste diversion, policy change for waste collection and cost, and management of waste …

Manufactured Homes In Nevada Counties, Joshua Padilla, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet presents data on the share of manufactured homes in each of Nevada’s 17 counties, as reported in the June 2022 The Daily Yonder article, “With Housing Shortage Still Ongoing, Manufactured Homes are Gaining Ground,” by Kristi Eaton. The original report includes data made available by the Housing Assistance Council (HAC) for each county in the United States from 2009 and 2018.

Investing In The Future: A Case Study On Demographic Trends And The Policy Implications For Clark County School District, Joshua Alexander Padilla

Student Research

Clark County School District (CCSD) is the 5th largest school district in the nation. Through the use of the United States Census Bureau’s 2020 ACS 5-year survey, demographic trends will be analyzed for CCSD. This brief will focus on three demographic trends that have direct connections to educational success. Those three demographic trends are: internet access, poverty level (households on SNAP), and school enrollment. Potential policy interventions include technology device loan programs, adopting meal programs for students and their families, and new staff recruiting plans for CCSD.

Births In The Mountain West, 2016-2020, Corryn Richardson, Hira Ahmed, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet examines state-level data on births and health indicators from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), a government health statistics unit of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This fact sheet presents data related to births in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah.

Payday Loans In The Mountain West, 2022, Issac Hernandez-Alcaraz, Vanessa M. Booth, Katie M. Gilbertson, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data on payday loans, produced by the Pew Charitable Trusts. We examine payday lending costs, most common loan type, and the average annual percentage rate in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah), and include specific analysis on differences between the states by regulatory category.

Drought Levels In Nevada Counties, 2022, Julianna Jovillar, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet synthesizes data on drought levels within Nevada counties from the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) in 2022. The information presented in this document focuses on the breakdown of the number of Nevada residents affected by the droughts within each county and the drought experience in each county.

Death And Dignity: Approaches To Medical Aid-In-Dying And Recommendations For Nevada, Cecilia Winchell

Student Research

Advancements in medicine, surgery, and treatment have prolonged life spans in a way that presents new considerations for death and dying. When it comes to terminal illnesses, all of these innovations increase life expectancy but cannot do the same for a patient’s quality of life. In fact, many people with terminal illnesses lose their autonomy and dignity, leading to the emergence of assisted dying as a way to provide terminally ill patients with an alternative to palliative care. This report takes a look at how assisted dying has developed within the US over the past two and a half decades, …

The Relationship Between Residential Land-Use Regulations And Regional Air Pollutants, Caren Royce Yap

Student Research

As cities continue to grow at exponential rates, land use regulations, specifically density restrictions, have been implemented to mitigate economic effects, from increasing housing prices to difficult public transportation construction. These regulations range in type, taking into account factors regarding the most effective urban form for cities and recently the presence of COVID-19. Land use effects on housing prices are also adjacent to tackle the climate crisis. Two of the most common air pollutants, PM 2.5 and Ozone, are run in a comparative analysis to areas with varying measures of density restrictions to detect a possible association using multiple regression …

Self-Reported Covid-19 Diagnosis And Severity And Its Association With Utilization Of And Delays In Needed Medical Care, Mohammad Hesam Alavi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Covid-19, caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2, was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. The pandemic-related disruptions and the pursuant lockdowns have adversely impacted every aspect of people’s lives including access to medical care, cancer care, preventive medicine, mental health, and dental care in an already imperfect healthcare system in the US. This study utilized the 2020 self-reported data from quarters 3 and 4 of the National Health Interview Survey, a cross-sectional interview survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to determine the possible association of self-reported COVID diagnosis, test positivity, and …

Teacher Salaries In The Mountain West, 2019 - 2021, Corryn Richardson, Joshua Padilla, Hira Ahmed, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines state-level data of teacher salary benchmarks from the National Education Association, a labor union representing public school teachers and other education faculty in the U.S. Data are presented on average teacher salaries, average teacher starting salaries, and teacher pay penalties in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah).

Strengthening The Southern Nevada Workforce Pipeline, Katie M. Gilbertson

Policy Briefs and Reports

This report analyzes the Southern Nevada employment ecosystem by utilizing occupational clusters recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor. The first section examines occupations in the tourism industry using three occupational clusters: hospitality and leisure; arts, audio/video technology and communications; and the transportation, distribution, and logistics. Next, this report utilizes the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance’s 2022 Workforce Blueprint to identify the top 15 in-demand occupations for Southern Nevada and occupational clusters. A case study of the MGM College Opportunity Program (COP) is presented to demonstrate an existing workforce training program that promotes upward mobility of leisure and hospitality employees …

Air Quality In The Mountain West, 2018-2020, Zachary Billot, Zachary Walusek, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet examines the state of air quality, including ozone levels and particle pollution, throughout the Mountain West from 2018 to 2020. Data from the American Lung Association “State of the Air” report is used to determine the quality of air in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Cutting Edge Technology Metros In The Mountain West, 2021, Sofia Takhtadjian, Elia Del Carmen Solano-Patricio, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet highlights data on cutting-edge technology metros in the Mountain West, as originally reported in the Commercial Cafe report, “Boulder Tops Silicon Valley as Most Cutting-Edge Metro in the U.S.” Of the top 30 cutting-edge metros in the nation, four are in the Mountain West: Boulder, CO (1st nationally); Denver, CO (7th nationally); Salt Lake City, UT (10th nationally); and Phoenix, AZ (27th nationally).

Mountain West States Most Dependent On The Federal Government, 2022, Saha Salahi, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet synthesizes data from the SmartAsset report, “States Most Dependent on the Federal Government – 2022 Edition.” This fact sheet explores federal government dependency for the following Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.