Geographic Differences in the Relative Price of Healthy Foods

Although healthy foods can be affordable, if less healthy foods are cheaper, individuals may have an economic incentive to consume a less healthful diet. Using the Quarterly Food-at-Home Price Database, we explore whether a select set of healthy foods (whole grains, dark green vegetables, orange vegetables, whole fruit, skim and 1% milk, fruit juice, and bottled water) are more expensive than less healthy alternatives. We find that not all healthy foods are more expensive than less healthy alternatives; skim and 1% milk are less expensive than whole and 2% milk and bottled water is generally less expensive than carbonated nonalcoholic drinks. We also find considerable geographic variation in the relative price of healthy foods. This price variation may contribute to geographic variation in diet and health outcomes.Quarterly Food-at-Home Price Database (QFAHPD), healthy food, price, geographic variation, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, Public Economics,

The Economic Diversity of Immigration Across the United States

While it is well known that some areas of the United States receive more immigrants than others, less is understood about the extent to which the character of immigration varies as well. There is much broader geographic variation in the skill and demographic composition of immigrants than natives, with important implications for their economic effects. This paper provides a new perspective by focusing on heterogeneity in outcomes such as the share of population growth due to immigration, the presence of immigrant children in schools, and the effect of immigration on the age, sex, language, and educational composition of the local population and workforce.

Metro Raise: Boosting the Earned Income Tax Credit to Help Metropolitan Workers and Families

Argues for increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit and expanding its options in order to help low-income workers and families meet rising costs and to ensure more inclusive economic growth. Estimates the impact of various proposals on metropolitan areas

Options for Regional Decision Making in Metro Atlanta

Who loses if nothing is done? The city of Atlanta, with its central location, mature transit network, excess capacity in utilities, and reasonably aggressive public officials will probably thrive no matter what happens outside the I-285 perimeter. Communities outside the boundaries of the ten-county Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) area will enjoy the temporary fruits of being the next ring of new suburban development. Caught between the Atlanta magnet and the sprawling communities outside the ARC, ARC's suburban communities may bear the worst of the downside effects of the current regional decision-making structure. In the end, though, it is all of North Georgia that loses as congestion, pollution, rising taxes, and reduced quality of life diminish its attractiveness to economic development

Volunteering in America: 2007 City Trends and Rankings

"Volunteering in America: 2007 City Trends and Rankings" uses volunteer data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics from 2004-2006. It ranks and includes profiles for 50 of the largest cities including the volunteer rate; the types of organizations through which residents serve; their main volunteering activities, the average hours per year and volunteer rates for age and gender demographic groups, and key trends and highlights. The report also analyzes social and demographic trends affect city volunteer rates and finds that there are four key drivers of volunteering: community attachment; commuting times, high school graduation levels and poverty; and the prevalence of nonprofits and their capacity to retain volunteers from year to year. The information on volunteering at the local level can help local governments, community leaders, service organizations, and volunteers nationwide develop a volunteer growth strategy, set goals to increase the level of individual engagement in volunteer activities, and build the infrastructure of nonprofits and communities to support more volunteer opportunities

Marriage Meets the Joneses: Relative Income, Identity, and Marital Status

This paper investigates the effect of relative income on marriage. Accounting flexibly for absolute income, the ratio between a manÂ’s income and a local reference group median is a strong predictor of marital status, but only for low-income men. Relative income affects marriage even among those living with a partner. A ten percent higher reference group income is associated with a two percent reduction in marriage. We propose an identity model to explain the results.marriage, relative income, inequality, identity

How Boston and Other American Cities Support and Sustain the Arts: Funding for Cultural Nonprofits in Boston and 10 Other Metropolitan Centers

A new study commissioned by the Boston Foundation on how Boston and comparable cities support the arts shows that only New York City has higher per capita contributed revenue for the art than Boston, among major American cities.The study, titled "How Boston and Other American Cities Support and Sustain the Arts: Funding for Cultural Nonprofits in Boston and 10 Other Metropolitan Cities," also examined Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, Houston, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Philadelphia, Portland Oregon, San Francisco, and Seattle. "How Boston" is a follow-up of sorts to a 2003 Boston Foundation report titled, "Funding for Cultural Organizations in Boston and Nine Other Metropolitan Areas."Key findings of this study, regarding Boston, include the fact that Boston's arts market is quite densely populated. While Greater Boston is the nation's 10th largest metro area and ranks ninth for total Gross Domestic Product, its non-profit arts market, which consists of more than 1,500 organizations, is comparable to that of New York and San Francisco, and consistently surpasses large cities such as Houston, Chicago and Philadelphia, in terms of the number of organizations and their per capita expenses

The Arts Economy in 20 Cities: Where Does Atlanta Stand?

The tremendous growth that Atlanta has experienced over the past decade has catapulted the city into a major metropolitan hub. Along with this growth, many issues have gained significance with regards to plans for the city's future direction of growth. One sector in particular that demands greater attention is the area of non-profit arts and art policy. The arts and culture have many perceived benefits for a community. The arts are commonly thought to improve a community's cultural life, revitalize urban areas, and while they also provide a base of support for artists and art organizations, may also ultimately stimulate economic growth. These benefits are thought to yield other desirable outcomes such as a safe and agreeable downtown, and an attractive site for business relocation.Unfortunately, non-profit regional arts in Atlanta have faced challenges in the areas of funding and audience development and there is anecdotal evidence that arts support is being provided by a relatively small segment of society. The Atlanta Arts Think Tank perceived that one appropriate way to validate the importance of these problems was to analyze data on Atlanta's regional performance, relative to other metropolitan peers.The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of the factors that might explain the condition of arts organizations in the region. The study compares Atlanta to nineteen of its peers in an attempt to determine where and if Atlanta is falling short, and what can be learned from other communities

The AALAM/UWMCED Index of African American Well-Being in the Nation’s Largest Metropolitan Areas

This report, prepared for the African American Leadership Alliance MKE (AALAM), presents an index of African American community well-being in Milwaukee and the nation’s 50 largest metropolitan areas. The index is based on Black community status for each metro area on 30 indicators of community well-being, in areas such as employment; income, poverty, and social conditions; community health; and conditions for youth and children. Ranks on all of the component indicators were then synthesized into a composite index, ranking each of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas on the wellbeing of their respective African American communities. This study finds, on almost all indicators examined, that Black Milwaukee consistently ranks at or near the bottom compared to African American communities in large metropolitan areas across the country. On the composite index of African American well-being, Milwaukee ranks worst, by a fairly wide margin. The AALAM aims “to redefine Milwaukee as a top-ranking city for African Americans by 2025.” This study reveals the magnitude of that challenge