Category Archives: Business incentives

Human Capital Programs Can Promote Local Economic Development; As Illustration, Consider “Promise-style” Place-Based College Scholarship Programs

Posted on December 9, 2015 by timbartik

A recent paper by me and a research analyst at the Upjohn Institute, Nathan Sotherland, analyzes the effects of “place-based” college scholarship programs on local economic development. Over 50 of these programs have been created since the 2005 creation of … Continue reading →

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The challenges posed by “short-termism” in corporate decision-making, and what it implies for policies to promote broader prosperity

Posted on April 30, 2015 by timbartik

Professor William Lazonick of the University of Massachusetts Lowell has a provocative recent paper, written for the Institute for New Economic Thinking, outlining his views on how some of the adverse trends in income inequality in the U.S. are due … Continue reading →

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What are the best paths to prosperity for localities and the nation?

Posted on April 13, 2015 by timbartik

I have a new paper published that bears on the following important issue: when will local economic development incentives – various types of customized tax breaks or services to individual businesses – be most effective in helping improve economic well-being? … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Economic development, Local variation in benefits, National vs. state vs. local, Timing of benefits | Comments Off on What are the best paths to prosperity for localities and the nation?

Incentives and the public interest

Posted on September 12, 2014 by timbartik

A new paper by me and George Erickcek on incentives was published online today in the journal Economic Development Quarterly. The online version is behind a paywall for non-academic readers, but it is quite similar to a prior working paper … Continue reading →

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Right-to-work laws and state economic development strategies

Posted on December 11, 2012 by timbartik

A high-profile issue right now, especially in Michigan, is the effects of state right-to-work laws on state economic development. As an economic development strategy, the adoption of a state right-to-work law is an uncertain and risky strategy, as I have … Continue reading →

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All business incentives are not created equal

Posted on December 4, 2012 by timbartik

Kenneth Thomas has a useful blog post pointing out that the New York Times database on business incentives, which accompanies Louise Story’s series, includes sales tax exemptions for business purchases of goods and services. Thomas’s figures, which are consistent with … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Economic development, Incentive design issues | 2 Comments

Film production incentives as economic development policy: why are they problematic?

Posted on December 4, 2012 by timbartik

Louise Story’s series in the New York Times on state and local business incentives concludes with an article (December 4, 2012) on film subsidies, highlighting Michigan’s experience. Why are film production incentives so problematic as economic development policy? I wrote … Continue reading →

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What should policymakers do about state and local business incentives?

Posted on December 2, 2012 by timbartik

Louise Story of the New York Times has a series, starting December 2nd (2012), on state and local business incentives. Full disclosure: I was interviewed by Ms. Story for the series, and I am quoted in the first article. From … Continue reading →

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Is our political system really interested in focusing on job creation for the long-term unemployed?

Posted on November 20, 2012 by timbartik

The more I read about the inside political debates during the Great Recession and its aftermath, the more I doubt whether the current U.S. political system puts a top priority on boosting employment among the long-term unemployed. For example, based … Continue reading →

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Boosting the recovery and long-run economic growth through job-creation incentives for the long-term unemployed, and early education investments

Posted on November 16, 2012 by timbartik

The Congressional Budget Office recently released a report exploring why this economic recovery from the recession trough has been unusually slow. As the report shows, as of the second quarter of 2012,  3 years after the Great Recession’s trough in … Continue reading →

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