Fate of the States: The New Geography of American Prosperity
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taxpayer responsibility for, 95, 97–98
unfunded state obligations, 53, 70, 91–92, 98–99, 101–2
Public employees. See also specific states
excessive benefits to, 11, 60–61, 81–82, 89–91, 116–17, 132
incentives for workers, 94–95
pensions to. See Public employee pension funds
reform of system, 203–5. See also Privatization
Public safety problem, and budget cuts, 129–32, 190
Real-estate boom. See Housing boom
Relocation. See Population shifts
Retirement plans
growth, factors in, 97
losses and financial collapse, 94, 97
of public employees. See Public employee pension funds
Reverse wealth effect, 88
Rhode Island
pension fund reform, 106, 193
pension investment return assumption, 100–101
unemployment, 169
Right-to-work laws, 166
Romer, Christina, 67
Roosevelt, Franklin D., 33
San Bernadino (California) bankruptcy, 113, 131–32, 191–93
Savings-and-loan (S&L) banks, 34–35, 37
Securitization. SeeMortgage-backed securities
Slavery, 20
Small businesses
credit, sources for, 7, 79
credit cuts, impact of, 45, 79–80
growth, central corridor states, 162
Smart money, 167–68
South Dakota
personal income growth in, 159
zero state income tax, 165–66
State budgets. See also individual states
boom-time spending excess, 9–11, 46, 49, 56–63
closing gaps, methods used, 62, 109, 112, 117
debt caps of, 77–78
debts, taxpayer responsibility for, 11–12, 77–78
discretionary budget items, 117, 119
downsizing, necessity of, 145–46
economically stable states. See Central corridor states
economically unstable states. SeeHousing-bust states
education cuts, 58, 119–24
emergency money, lack of, 117
expenditure changes (2000–2010), 56–57
fiscal cliff, 140
geographic mobility, impact on, 26–29, 63–64
largest expenses, 119
legal disclosure requirements for, 53, 91, 95
libraries, cuts to, 124–27
Medicaid costs, increase in, 59, 65, 119
miscellaneous tax hikes, 69
mismanagement, lack of transparency about, 113–17
pension fund debt. See Public employee pension funds
pet projects, financing of, 11, 57
public health cuts, 73
public safety–related cuts, 129–32
revenue sources for, 53–55, 65, 70–71
tax rate hikes, 69, 78–79
tax receipt declines, 27–28, 57–58, 63
tax receipt rebound (2010– ), 63, 69
tax receipts outpaced by debt service, 72–73
tax receipts outpaced by spending, 58–59, 64–65, 72, 111, 118, 136
total liabilities (2011), 111–13
waste-collection cuts, 127–29
welfare monies from fed to, 138–40
State governments. See also specific states
ARRA money, use of, 67–69, 140
borrowing and loans by, 11, 65–66, 71–72, 77–78, 116, 118
federal government transfers to, 67–69, 70, 112–13
gambling, considering, 69
housing bust, overall impacts, 6–11, 49, 57–59
municipal bond debt issued by, 65, 70–71, 77–78
privatization of services, 69–70, 128–29, 145–51
public service delivery by, 54, 66
and unemployment cycle, 10, 63
Steel industry, 23
Stockton (California) bankruptcy, 60–61, 114, 130, 189–90
Subprime loans, 7–8
advantages for banks, 2, 5
ARMs as, 39–41
bank-targeted states, 7
birthplace of, 82–83
creation and sale of, 39–40
irresponsible lending practices, 3, 5, 7, 39, 41, 43
securitization of. SeeMortgage-backed securities
Suburbanization, 21
Sun Belt states. See also specific states
real estate inflation in, 26
Taxation. See also Property taxes
mortgage interest deduction, 35
state tax hikes. See specific states
zero tax states, 165–66
Tennessee, personal income growth in, 159
Texas
boom-time spending excess, 56, 57
corporations moving to, 171, 176–78
debt per capita in, 83
employment growth, 169, 177
infrastructure projects, 200–201
mobile capital investment in, 169
oil and gas production, 158, 159
personal income growth in, 159
population inflow to, 63–64, 157–58
poverty level in, 141
revenue, sources of, 57
tax receipts outpaced by spending, 63
waste-collection cuts, 128
welfare assistance spending, 139
zero state income tax, 165–66, 178
Textile industry, 20–22
Unemployment
breaking cycle, actions for, 144–45
economic costs of, 135–36, 141
insurance, state depletion of, 144
and poverty, 137–38, 141–44
states with highest rate, 7, 9, 47, 68, 160
states with lowest rate, 8, 160
Unions
contracts/compensation. See Public employees
right-to-work laws versus, 166–67
U.S. economy, 19–29
agrarian economy era, 20
boom-and-bust cycles, 19–20, 22–26, 170
economic crash/recession (2007– ). See Financial collapse (2007– )
housing/leverage revolution, 25–26, 44
Industrial Revolution, 20–22
manufacturing era, 23–25, 44
manufacturing revival, 17–18, 25
power revolution era, 22–23
state and local level. See Local governments; State budgets; State governments
U.S. government. See Federal government
Veteran’s Administration (VA) mortgages, 36
Virginia
mobile capital investment in, 169
waste-collection cuts, 128
Wachovia, 41
Washington, D.C., poverty level in, 141
Washington Mutual, 41
Washington State
state budget cuts, 55
zero state income tax, 165–66
Waste-collection cuts, 127–29
Welfare programs. See Poverty assistance
West Virginia, poverty level in, 141
Wisconsin, bid to lure business/people to, 173
Wyoming
high per capita income of, 123
oil and gas production, 159, 161
tuition costs in, 123
zero state income tax, 165–66
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Contents
Introduction
PART I | The Fall
Chapter 1 | It Starts at Home
Chapter 2 | Housing Revisited
Chapter 3 | States Gone Wild
Chapter 4 | Pensions: The Debt Bomb Nobody’s Talking About
Chapter 5 | The Negative Feedback Loop from Hell
Chapter 6 | The New American Poverty
PART II | The Rise
Chapter 7 | A New Map of Prosperity
Chapter 8 | State Arbitrage
Chapter 9 | David Takes On Goliath: N
ew Political Precedents
Chapter 10 | The Way Forward
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index