Public Policy
The Gardner Institute provides data-driven, context-specific insights about public policy in Utah. We prepare in-depth quantitative and qualitative studies on key Utah issues in partnership with private-sector stakeholders and state and local government. Our research provides vital information decision-makers and the public use to help Utah prosper.
2023 Economic Report to the Governor (Highlights)
Utah enters 2023 facing significant economic uncertainty as decision-makers continue to grapple with ever-changing pockets of economic strength and weakness. The post-pandemic economy has altered many traditional economic relationships.
2023 Economic Report to the Governor
The 2023 Economic Report to the Governor is the 35th publication in this series. Through the last three and a half decades, the Economic Report to the Governor has served as the preeminent source for data, research, and analysis about the Utah economy. It includes a national and state economic overview, a summary of state government economic development activities, an analysis of economic activity based on the standard indicators, and a detailed review of industries and issues of particular interest.
Utah’s School- and College-Age Populations: 2021 Long-Term Planning Projection Update
The age detail provided in the long-term planning projections published by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute illustrates how changes in age structure and declines in births impact the school (5-to-17-year-old) and college (18-to-24-year-old) age populations throughout the state over the next four decades.
December 2022 Newsmaker Breakfast: Property Tax Insights Presentation
The property tax is Utah’s most stable tax. This stability comes from both the less volatile nature of property and the design of Utah’s property tax system
Property Tax Insights
The property tax is Utah’s most stable tax. This stability comes from both the less volatile nature of property and the design of Utah’s property tax system.
A Cloudy Crystal Ball: Pandemic Forecasting Challenges Highlight Need for Budget Relief Valves
STATE BUDGET OFFICIALS HAVE RUN a gauntlet of challenges since COVID-19 descended upon the US in January 2020. The nation’s economy whipsawed through the pandemic—from growth to contraction to recovery to overheating—as the federal government’s crisis response encourage shutdowns and unleashed trillions of dollars of stimulus money.
Gardner Business Review: U.S. and Utah Debt Policy: A Study in Contrasts
The state of Utah’s bonding practices vary dramatically from that of the federal government. Instead of borrowing for ongoing programs as the federal government does, Utah wisely borrows for needed capital projects such as highways and buildings.
Utah’s Invisible Workforce: The Economic Contributions and Health Impacts of Family Caregiving
As the need for family caregiving is expected to grow over the next decade, there are concerns about the mental and physical toll it places on Utah’s caregivers.
A Business Vision for Utah’s Energy Future (Data Compendium)
This Data Compendium provides supplementary data, definitions, and focus group summaries for the companion report, “A Business Vision for Utah’s Energy Future.” This companion report can be accessed on the Salt Lake Chamber or Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute website.
A Business Vision for Utah’s Energy Future
Utah's business community envisions an energy future that places Utah at the center of the nation's energy transition by harmonizing environmental and economic progress to ensure a balanced low carbon energy future that remains affordable, reliable, and sustainable.
