Six-state review

Year-to-date revenues for the first four months of FY2003 were above their FY2002 level in most New England states. Hit hard by dramatically diminished tax receipts and/or increased spending pressures, all six states closed FY2002 with deficits that had to be eliminated by end-of-the-year fiscal measures. The improved revenue collections for the first four months of FY2003 were welcome. General revenues were up in Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Sales tax receipts, driven in large part by car purchases induced by manufacturers' offers of zero percent financing, were up in Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, and Vermont; meals and rooms tax receipts were up in New Hampshire. Personal income tax collections were mixed; although higher in Maine and Vermont, they were down slightly in Rhode Island and sharply in Connecticut and Massachusetts.Deficit financing - New England ; Revenue

Preparing for the storm: rainy day funds in New England

Rainy day funds have played an important role in alleviating the current state fiscal crisis. This article examines the benefits of these funds, the various ways in which they can be structured, and the differences in the structure and use of these funds in New England.Deficit financing - New England ; Fiscal policy - New England

Securitizing tobacco settlements: the basics, the benefits, the risks

In this time of fiscal hardship for American states, governors and legislators across the country are searching for ways to make up for revenue shortfalls. Partly because of the severity of the revenue crisis, innovative and unconventional means of raising cash have begun to surface. One of these approaches, the topic of this article, is the securitization of tobacco settlement revenues.Tobacco industry ; Fiscal policy - New England ; Deficit financing - New England ; Bonds - New England

Issues in economics

Budget crises in the six New England states have prompted spending cuts, leaving taxpayers to ask, "Where does the state spend our money?"State finance - New England ; Fiscal policy - New England

Dealing with deficits: how New England States are managing the fiscal crisis

Following the economic boom of the late 1990s, the current recessionary period has caused revenues to decline and demand for government services to rise. Now, government executives and lawmakers, faced with persistent budget deficits, are struggling with difficult decisions: "What cuts should we make?" "Could we, should we, raise taxes?" "How deeply do we dip into quickly diminishing reserves?"...Deficit financing - New England ; Economic conditions - New England

Six-state review

New England states are facing their worst fiscal crises in at least a decade. General revenues, especially those from the personal income tax, fell sharply in every New England state except New Hampshire in FY2002. All six states closed the fiscal year with deficits. Although preliminary reports suggest that FY2003 revenue collections in some states may be up from last year, deficits are still expected throughout the region. In response, all six states are cutting expenditures, drawing down reserve accounts, and/or raising taxes and fees.Deficit financing - New England ; Economic conditions - New England

Comparing Wealth Effects: The Stock Market versus the Housing Market

We examine the link between increases in housing wealth, financial wealth, and consumer spending. We rely upon a panel of 14 countries observed annually for various periods during the past 25 years and a panel of U.S. states observed quarterly during the 1980s and 1990s. We impute the aggregate value of owner-occupied housing, the value of financial assets, and measures of aggregate consumption for each of the geographic units over time. We estimate regressions relating consumption to income and wealth measures, finding a statistically significant and rather large effect of housing wealth upon household consumption.Consumption, nonfinancial wealth, housing market, real estate

Comparing Wealth Effects: The Stock Market Versus the Housing Market

We examine the link between increases in housing wealth, financial wealth, and consumer spending. We rely upon a panel of 14 countries observed annually for various periods during the past 25 years and a panel of U.S. states observed quarterly during the 1980s and 1990s. We impute the aggregate value of owner-occupied housing, the value of financial assets, and measures of aggregate consumption for each of the geographic units over time. We estimate regressions relating consumption to income and wealth measures, finding a statistically significant and rather large effect of housing wealth upon household consumption.

Wealth Effects Revisited 1978-2009

We re-examine the link between changes in housing wealth, financial wealth, and consumer spending. We extend a panel of U.S. states observed quarterly during the seventeen-year period, 1982 through 1999, to the thirty-one year period, 1978 through 2009. Using techniques reported previously, we impute the aggregate value of owner-occupied housing, the value of financial assets, and measures of aggregate consumption for each of the geographic units over time. We estimate regression models in levels, first differences and in error-correction form, relating per capita consumption to per capita income and wealth. We find a statistically significant and rather large effect of housing wealth upon household consumption. This effect is consistently larger than the effect of stock market wealth upon consumption. This reinforces the conclusions reported in our previous analysis. In contrast to our previous analysis, however, we do find -- based on data which include the recent volatility in asset markets -- that the effects of declines in housing wealth in reducing consumption are at least as large as the effects of increases in housing wealth in increasing the course of household consumption.Consumption, Nonfinancial wealth, Housing market, Real estate

Flight investigation of methods for implementing noise-abatement landing approaches

Flight tests and simulation of steep noise reducing landing approaches with jet transpor