Public Finance
The Gardner Institute employs a team of economists who specialize in public finance. We also benefit from a Public Finance Council that guides our research agenda and supports the development of a public finance practice area. Our research focus areas include, but are not limited to: tax policy, revenue forecasting, fiscal impacts, budget stress-testing, budget transparency, and public finance best practices.
Insight: Public Asset Development in Utah
By: Max Backlund and Dejan Eskic Note: The opinions expressed are those of the authors alone and do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™. Public finance is one of those topics that few people ever plan to research, but here we are writing a blog post about it. And, here you are reading a blog post about it. So, before you read too far along and become enraptured by the idea of increasing non-tax revenues, let’s[...]
Policy Brief: Public Asset Development in Utah
Public asset development rose to national awareness with the publication of The Public Wealth of Cities by Dag Detter and Stephen Fölster in 2017. Detter and Fölster, among others, offer the asset inventorying process as a public finance tool to help public sector organizations – including cities, counties, and any other land-owning public entity – to increase revenue without increasing taxes or public debt. Specifically, Detter and Fölster address assets that are “economic assets or operations that generate non-tax revenue, or could do so if properly structured and used.”
Retail Sales and the Pandemic: A Most Remarkable Year
This research brief examines 2020 retail trade sales in the context of long-term historical trends in sales activity. A seemingly straightforward comparative analysis of yearly sales, however, was complicated by data comparability issues. Hence, care was taken to ensure an “apples to apples” approach, which required some discussion of evolving tax reporting and remittance requirements
Insight: Utah’s Challenge
By: Phil Dean Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™. Utah’s population and economy continue growing. This growth creates tremendous opportunities for Utahns. Growth also creates challenges. Some growth challenges stem from the interactions of topographical and other physical constraints with legacy transportation, land, air, and water use patterns. Other challenges arise because outdated systems poorly align with the modern economy. Yet transformational economic changes[...]
Insight: Federal Economic Stimulus Efforts
By: Phil Dean Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™. Since the Great Depression nearly a century ago, the U.S. Congress and President have used fiscal policy (taxing and spending powers) and the Federal Reserve has used monetary policy (influencing interest rates through control of the money supply) in an attempt to counteract economic declines. Over the past year, both fiscal and monetary policy tools[...]
March Newsmaker Breakfast: Federal Stimulus and its Impact on Utah
Hear from local economists and experts on the impact of federal stimulus spending on Utah.
Guest Insight: Utah Needs a Federal Child Allowance
By: Louise Knauer and Susan Olson Note: The opinions expressed represent the views of the Utah Citizens’ Counsel and its Social Support Systems Committee. The views do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™. The Utah Citizens’ Counsel (UCC) is an independent, non-partisan group of senior community advocates dedicated to improving Utah public policy on a range of issues. We issued our latest report in November 2020. We sometimes think of ourselves as the voice of well-informed grandparents,[...]
Informed Decisions 2020 Election Brief
In this INFORMED DECISIONS™ election brief, we share insights in three areas of critical concern to Utahns: education funding, housing affordability, and the impact of COVID-19 on Utah’s economy. We will also host forums and candidate discussions as a companion to this research.
Insight: Despite Public Health Concerns, Utah’s Fiscal House is in Order
By: Juliette Tennert Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™. Earlier this year, we started to hear about a mysterious virus popping up in China. At that time, I never would have imagined that Governor Herbert would be declaring a state of emergency, and the University of Utah, where I work and teach, would be moving classes online for more than 30,000 students in response[...]
Insight: State Budget Report Cards Out, Utah a Model Student
By: Juliette Tennert Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™. The Volcker Alliance gave Utah high marks in state budget practices in its recently released Truth and Integrity in State Budgeting: The Balancing Act report. […]