Economic Impact Analysis of Connect SoCal

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The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) is the country’s largest Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and includes six counties in Southern California, spanning over 38k square miles. SCAG serves 18.7 million residents, accounting for 48 percent of California’s population. With a GDP of $1.6 trillion, the SCAG region was the 15 largest economy in the world in 2021. The SCAG region’s size and its social, economic, and political diversity raise planning challenges but also position the region as a leader in economic and policy innovation. In the Fall of 2023, SCAG released the 2024 Connect SoCal Plan, SCAG’s quadrennial Regional Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy. Connect SoCal outlines the region’s long-range transportation plan and strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

In this webinar, Gigi Moreno, Ph.D., SCAG’s Senior Economist, will share recent economic indicators for the SCAG region and SCAG’s regional economic outlook for 2024. While the SCAG region’s economy reflects the U.S. economy, Dr. Moreno will highlight distinct features of the SCAG economy and highlight how regional economic differences can shape local economic trends and inform regional planning. In this webinar, Dr. Moreno will also delve into SCAG’s economic impact analysis of Connect SoCal, which includes an economic impact analysis using the REMI TranSight model, an estimate of the economic benefits of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and an analysis of the economic impacts of a more inclusive and equitable labor market.

Gigi Moreno, Ph.D.
Senior Economist
Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)

Dr. Gigi Moreno is a Senior Economist with the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG). She has worked as an applied economist in various roles, including economic consulting, healthcare consulting, academia, and the public sector. At SCAG, Dr. Moreno focuses on policy strategies for inclusive economic growth and is responsible for SCAG’s long-range employment projections, integral to the agency’s regional land use plan and environmental compliance strategy. Prior to joining SCAG, Dr. Moreno taught environmental economic and industrial organization at Cal State University, Long Beach. Dr. Moreno has published numerous peer-reviewed papers in health economics, agricultural and environmental economics, cannabis economics, and climate change policy. In addition to a B.A. in economics from Carleton College, Dr. Moreno has a Ph.D. in Agricultural & Natural Resource Economics from UC Berkeley and a certificate in Geospatial Science from UCLA.

Revitalizing Rockford: Economic Impacts of a Transformational Investment

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This webinar was presented by Jason Holcomb, Director of Community Impact at Region 1 Planning Council, and Michael Dunn, Executive Director at Region 1 Planning Council. 

Rockford, Illinois is the largest city in Illinois outside of the Chicago metropolitan area. Rockford has been actively working towards revitalization and diversification of its industries. Region 1 Planning Council, a regional planning council serving the Northern Illinois region, provided an economic analysis for the transition of an old and unused manufacturing plant into a bustling community, modeling a development plan that aims to renovate buildings to greatly expand housing and incentivize small businesses to move in. 

In this webinar, presenters Michael Dunn and Jason Holcomb will demonstrate how a $420 million investment is being used to transform an underutilized area of Rockford. They will explain how diversifying industry can be used to grow wealth and attract residents. Michael and Jason will then elaborate on how new housing is being developed to accommodate this strategy. Using REMI TranSight, they will analyze rippling effects on key economic indicators, including population, employment, compensation, and industry output. This webinar is ideal for anybody interested in the fields of economic development, regional planning, and economic/demographic modeling.   

Chips and Jobs: Economic and Fiscal Impacts of the Micron Facility in Upstate New York

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In 2022, President Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act, which allocated billions of dollars to make the United States more competitive in nanotechnology, strengthen the supply chain, and support research and development, creating job opportunities and allowing the U.S. to be more independent. Part of this funding went towards providing incentives to Micron Technology to build a $100 billion semiconductor factory in New York State. On behalf of the state, REMI used Tax-PI to project the economic and fiscal impacts of this investment through 2055.

In this presentation, we show projections of the direct economic effects of the facility, the associated indirect effects via the supply chain, and the induced effects from increased consumer spending, additional investment, and other sources. We illustrate how this newly generated economic activity expands the tax base and generates higher revenues at the state and local levels, and we will discuss the benefit-cost analysis that compared these fiscal benefits against the state’s incentive offerings.

Overall, this study highlights the potential economic and fiscal benefits of expanding the semiconductor manufacturing industry in New York, offering valuable insights for policymakers and their constituents in shaping future economic development strategies for the state.

Modeling the Economic Impacts of Online Sports Betting

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Online sports betting has generated a significant amount of tax revenue for the states that have legalized it in the United States. 37 states have legalized online sports betting, and each year the industry grows dramatically. From 2021 to 2022 there was almost a $1 billion increase in state tax revenue from gambling, bringing it to $1.5 billion for the year nationally (sportshandle.com). In areas where online sports betting has not been legalized, illegal gambling can be accessed that results in a loss of potential tax revenue for that state.

In this webinar, Julian, Owen, and Daniel, will discuss the positive and negative outcomes of online sports betting legalization using REMI Tax-PI as a base for their economic analysis. They will use the state of Florida as a case study, where online sports betting is not currently legal but is currently a topic of discussion. We encourage anybody with an interest in sports betting, tax policy, or revenue and budget forecasting to attend this webinar.

Modeling the Economic Impact of Truck-Only Lanes

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Transportation and warehousing are major industries to the United States economy. Trucking has been one of the most common jobs in the nation for many years, and the industry continues to grow, causing a higher proportion of trucks on the highway. From 2020 to 2021 there was an 18% increase in fatal crashes involving large trucks. Introducing truck-only lanes could make trucking an even more effective method of transporting goods and increase safety on the highway.   

In this webinar, Anthony and Scott will use REMI TranSight to model the economic impacts of truck-only lanes. They will explain the pros and cons of policy decisions to create truck-only lanes, focusing on economic factors like employment, income, population, and more. They will demonstrate how TranSight can be used to model a project’s long-term rippling economic impacts rather than just the direct impacts. We encourage those interested in supply chain logistics, economics, and transportation to attend this webinar.