Informed people can disagree over whether or not to change the Colorado National Monument to a national park. But it’s difficult to argue the monument doesn’t deserve national park designation — or at least a serious consideration of that possibility. Regardless of how familiar the experience, a trip over Rim Rock Drive as it snakes […]
There’s a lot of talk in our nation’s capital these days about putting aside politics and coming together to reduce the federal deficit. To this economist, that sounds good. Unfortunately, some of the people saying its time to drop the politics are either disingenuous or simply don’t understand the economics at work. As a quick […]
For more than four decades, the U.S. Small Business Administration has acknowledged the extraordinary contributions small businesses make to the economy of our nation by designating a special week in their honor. Proclaimed by President Barack Obama, May 16 to 20 is National Small Business Week in Washington, D.C., where entrepreneurs from across the nation […]
President Barack Obama is working on an executive order that would require any company bidding on federal government work to list all political contributions by the firm, officers and directors, along with donations made to private groups engaged in speech related to, for example, politics and policy. This mandate would cover contributions and donations made […]
Economic forecasts are lot like … well, opinions, in that it seems everyone has one. Nonetheless, there’s a growing consensus economic conditions are improving in the Grand Valley and that light at the end of the tunnel might not be a train after all. As usual, though, there are caveats. And still more patience likely […]
For parents, graduation is like a welcome gasp of relief sucked through teeth clinched tight in terror. So far, so good. But now what? At a time when it feels as though the only certainty is uncertainty, parents understandably worry about what the future holds for their children. Will they fare well at college? Will […]
During the recession and subsequent recovery, the general move on taxes in the states has been in a distinctly negative direction. That is, faced with budget deficits, states have reacted by raising taxes. This past July, for example, the National Conference of State Legislatures reported: “The impact of the severe economic recession that began in […]
The General Assembly’s redistricting committee recently released proposed maps outlining Colorado’s new congressional boundaries. The maps offered by the Democrats and Republican members of the committee are as different as night and day. The Republican maps start from the fact Colorado has the same number of congressional districts in 2011 as we did in 2001. […]
Economic development is in one sense an evolutionary process. The business of attracting new businesses and jobs constantly changes, in large part because of changing markets and economic circumstances. The situation has been no different for the Grand Junction Economic Partnership and its predecessor organization. Formed in 1980s in the aftermath of the oil shale […]
It’s kind of enlightening when your friend Janet Rowland grabs you by the scruff of your neck and drags you into a “volunteer” position or two (or three or four!) at your kid’s charter school — in this case Caprock Academy. I have to admit, a good part of this is my fault. At one […]