Public Policy Commons^™

Growth In High-Paying Jobs: Mountain West Metros, Joshua Padilla, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data from a Stessa report titled, “U.S. Cities with the Largest Growth in High-Paying Jobs.” Data are presented for 25 metros in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah).

Nevada Medical Residencies, 2021-2022, Katie M. Gilbertson, Geneva Martin, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet highlights medical residency data for the 2021 and 2022 graduating classes of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) School of Medicine. This fact sheet highlights the number of residency program matches at the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV and the UNR School of Medicine in 2021 and 2022 and reveals where Nevada medical school students pursue their residencies.

The Evolution Of The Southern Nevada Healthcare Economy: Building The Unlv Academic Health Center, The Lincy Institute

Lincy Institute Events

With the successful launch of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV and the completion of its medical education building, Southern Nevada is positioned to expand its healthcare infrastructure - and its healthcare economy - to create a comprehensive, integrated healthcare system to serve our fast-growing community. As UNLV moves forward with the development of an integrated academic health center within the Las Vegas Medical District, understanding the economic and social benefits of such a transformational project is important to stakeholders throughout the region.

The Lincy Institute hosted representatives of Tripp Umbach - the nation's leading consultant on community …

Foster Youth In The Mountain West, Zachary Billot, Elia Del Carmen Solano-Patricio, Sofia Takhtadjian, Joshua Padilla, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet examines population trends for foster youth and their experiences with foster care in the Mountain West region. The data are sourced from the report “State-level Data for Understanding Child Welfare in the United States” which cites the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN) for fiscal year (FY) 2020 and the “State-by State Data” report by the Casey Family Programs from FY 2020. This fact sheet highlights the number of foster youth in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) and their demographic composition.

Science And Engineering State Indicators: Mountain West States, Olivia K. Cheche, Kristian Thymianos, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines the Science & Engineering State Indicators database from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

The Great Student Swap, Aaron Klein

Policy Briefs and Reports

For the last twenty years, nearly every flagship university in the U.S. has been decreasing its share of in-state students and enrolling more students from out of state, a phenomenon I call the “Great Student Swap.” Using data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), I examine every “flagship” public university by comparing incoming first year students from 2002 through 2018 (those who would have graduated in the spring 2022 assuming the traditional four-year timeframe for completion). I find that the share of out-of-state students has risen by an average of 55 percent since 2002 and that 48 of …

Public Charter And District Public Schools In The Mountain West, 2019-2021, Zachary Billot, Kristian Thymianos, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet explores data from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) report, “Voting With Their Feet: A State-Level Analysis of Public Charter School and District Public School Trends.” Specifically, we examine enrollment trends for district public schools and public charter schools in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years.

The Gender Wage Gap In The Mountain West, Annie Vong, Katie M. Gilbertson, Katie Lim, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data on the gender wage gap, or the discrepancy in pay between female and male workers, in Mountain West metros. The Pew Research Center report, “Young Women are Out-Earning Young Men in Several U.S. Cities,” includes data on the gender wage gap for people under the age of 30 in various metropolitan areas across the United States in 2019. The Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey explores male and female occupational earnings by job sector for workers 16 and over.

Bipartisanship Of Mountain West Members Of Congress, 2013-2022, Eshaan Vakil, Issac Hernandez-Alcaraz, Katie Lim, Kristian Thymianos, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Elections & Governance

This fact sheet reports data on bipartisanship scores from the Bipartisan Index, a data collection produced by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. We present data for members of Congress in the 113th to 117th Congresses (2013—2022) from Mountain West states (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah), and include additional analysis of members of Congress from Nevada.

Acreage Of Foreign Owned Farmland In The Mountain West, 2020, Geneva Martin, Saha Salahi, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet examines foreign-owned farmland in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah, as originally reported by the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency.

Health Rankings: Mountain West States, 2021, Hira Ahmed, Sofia Takhtadjian, Olivia K. Cheche, Elia Del Carmen Solano-Patricio, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

Using data from the United Health Foundation’s “America’s Health Rankings Annual Report 2021,” this fact sheet compares various measures of health in the Mountain West using data from 2014 to 2021. The original report includes data on the five determinants of health including social and economic factors, physical environment, clinical care, behaviors, and health outcomes. This fact sheet examines health metrics for the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Housing Availability In Nevada, 2017-2022, Annie Vong, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet examines data on housing availability across nine Nevada counties from 2017 to 2022. Eight Nevada counties are not represented in this fact sheet due to a lack of data in the original report. The original report by MarketWatch analyzes housing inventory from 2017 to 2022 and median list prices in 2022 across counties in the United States.

Renewable Energy Legislation In Nevada: 2017 - 2021, Peter Grema, Zachary Walusek, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

The purpose of this fact sheet is to summarize legislative actions from the biennial 79th, 80th, and 81st Nevada Legislative Sessions (2017, 2019, and 2021) regarding solar energy production and state efforts to reach 50 percent energy production from renewable sources by 2030. By 2050, Nevada has a statutorily mandated obligation to be a net-zero carbon producer in fulfilling energy production needs from large scale utility services.

Economic Mobility Index Of Public R1 Universities In The Mountain West, Peter Grema, Saha Salahi, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents data on public R1 higher education institutions in the Mountain West from the “Economic Mobility Index,” crafted by higher education researchers at the think tank, Third Way. We summarize the rankings of eleven Mountain West R1 institutions in Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.

Diffusion Return: A Case Study Of New Orleans, Neiufi Iongi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study establishes and explores the concept of diffusion return. This study utilizes a qualitative case study of the city of New Orleans and their regulation of short-term rentals to establish and explore diffusion return. A network map is constructed of cities that diffused short-term rental regulation information with New Orleans. Information movements are sketched with the network map, and the resulting patterns illustrate how diffused information travels both inward and outward across jurisdictions. Additionally, thematic analysis is applied to qualitatively analyze data gathered from five interviews with New Orleans city staff, three short-term rental reports. and public meeting minutes …

The True Cost Of Auto Insurance In The Mountain West, 2022, Annie Vong, Saha Salahi, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Transportation & Infrastructure

This fact sheet examines data on average annual premiums, percent of income spent on auto insurance, and life events associated with the rising cost of auto insurance in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah). The original report includes data on national averages for auto insurance premiums for all fifty states.

Shortage Of Affordable Rental Homes In The Mountain West, Joshua Padilla, Kelliann Beavers, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet examines data from the 2022 report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), “The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes” for the Mountain West region. The original report includes data from 2016- 2020 American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) to help “determine the availability of rental homes affordable to extremely low-income households.”

Student Loan Debt In Mountain West States, Zachary Walusek, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet summarizes findings on student loan debt across Mountain West states from “Student Loan Debt by State,” a report by the Education Data Initiative.

Human Trafficking In Nevada And The Mountain West, 2016-2020, Corryn Richardson, Elia Del Carmen Solano-Patricio, Kristian Thymianos, Saha Salahi, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Criminal Justice

The National Human Trafficking Hotline (“NHTH”) maintains one of the largest human trafficking datasets in the nation. This fact sheet reports on the number of tips the hotline received related to Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah. Data collected includes the top venues for human, labor, and other types of trafficking cases from 2016-2020, as well as demographic information for victims and survivors.

Changes In State Fiscal Support For Higher Education In The Mountain West, 2016-2021, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet explores higher education budget appropriation changes from fiscal year 2016 (FY16) to fiscal year 2021 (FY21) in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. This fact sheet reports data original presented in the 2021 Inside Higher Ed report, “States Maintain Higher Ed Funding,” by Emma Whitford.

The Outdoor Recreation Economy In The Mountain West, 2020, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Joshua Padilla, Peter Grema, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet provides select data from the State Outdoor Recreation Satellite Account (ORSA) at the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) on the 2020 outdoor recreation economy in the Mountain West region, including Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado.

Wildfire Risk In Mountain West States, 2017-2021, Olivia K. Cheche, Corryn Richardson, Zachary Billot, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet examines data on wildfire destruction in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The original report from the Insurance Information Institute presents findings on percent of properties at risk of wildfire destruction, the number of wildfires by state, and numbers of acres burned per state.

Best Cities For Affordable Homeownership In The Mountain West, Kelliann Beavers, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet highlights data on the best cities for affordable homeownership in the Mountain West, based on the SmartAsset report, “Best Cities to Buy an Affordable Family Home – 2021 Edition.” The report is SmartAsset’s second annual study, following the 2020 report, and includes data on 100 of the largest cities in the United States. This fact sheet highlights the rank, index, down payment-to-income ratio, housing costs as a percent of income, and four-year change in homeownership rate within each of the 15 Mountain West cities included in the original report.

Housing Affordability For Top Occupations In Nevada Metros, 2022, Kristian Thymianos, Elia Del Carmen Solano-Patricio, Ally M. Beckwith, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet combines housing and employment data from the National Housing Conference (NHC) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to examine housing affordability for the 10 most common occupations in the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV and the Reno-Sparks, NV metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in Quarter 1 of 2022.

Arts Vibrancy In The Mountain West, 2020, Joshua Padilla, Ally M. Beckwith, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Cities & Metros

This fact sheet highlights data on various arts vibrant communities in the United States from the 2020 Arts Vibrancy Index Report. The growth of arts communities across the country contributes to the increased intensity of the United States’ cultural sector. Using the original data prepared by Southern Methodist University (SMU) Data Arts, this fact sheet focuses on the arts vibrancy of communities in the Mountain West.

Women In Tech In The Mountain West Cities, 2021, Saha Salahi, Joshua Padilla, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data exploring the SmartAsset, “Best Cities for Women in Tech – 2021 Edition” and presents information on the best cities for women in tech in the Mountain West. This fact sheet focuses on the eight cities in the Mountain West region that appear within the 63 U.S. cities included in the original report.

Automatic Voter Registration And Voter Turnout In Nevada Elections, Dielle T. Telada, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Elections & Governance

For the first time in Nevada’s history, voters who are not registered as Democrats or Republicans (i.e., nonpartisans and minor party registrants) constitute a majority of active registered voters. In particular, the rapid growth in nonpartisan registrants corresponds with Nevada’s adoption of Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) in January 2020, resulting in the addition of more than 320,000 new voters to the electorate. This fact sheet summarizes voter registration and voter turnout statistics reported by the Nevada Secretary of State for elections since 2012.

Workforce Development: A Comparative Analysis Of Community College Governance And Funding In The Mountain West And Policy Proposals For Nevada, Peter Grema

Student Research

Nevada experienced one of the worst economic downturns in the nation following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed the vulnerability of Nevada workers. In his 2021 State of the State address, Governor Steve Sisolak highlighted aligning the state’s workforce development capacity with community colleges to best leverage federal funding and statewide infrastructure for jobs training and economic recovery. In addition, he said, “I will be asking the Legislature to work with the Nevada System of Higher Education over the next two years to develop a framework transitioning Nevada’s community colleges to a new independent authority that will focus …

Student And Faculty Diversity: University Of Nevada, Las Vegas (Unlv) And University Of Nevada, Reno (Unr), 2012-2020, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet highlights data on the racial and ethnic diversity of students, tenured faculty, tenure-track faculty, and non-tenured/tenure-track faculty at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). Data are presented for each year from 2012 to 2020. The UNLV Office of Decision Support and representatives at UNR assisted in the compilation of this data.

State School Finance In The Mountain West, 2019, Kristian Thymianos, Ally M. Beckwith, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines K-12 school finance indicators drawing from an original report by Albert Shanker Institute and Rutgers University Graduate School of Education. These indicators show whether states are funding school districts to national standards. This fact sheet examines state-level data for the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) from the State School Finance Profiles report for the 2018-2019 school year.