Via the Twitter feed of the Georgia Municipal Association, Forbes Magazine has an article focusing on the rapid growth of American college cities.
Athens-Clarke County has enjoyed a population growth of more than 13 percent since 2000, putting in directly in line, however the Forbes article focused on residents who moved into the community in the past year. Given that general population growth includes other factors, it's hard to know exactly where Athens-Clarke County ranks.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Opt in or opt out, it's up to you
This is brilliant ...
That gives you an essentially national administrative structure, but also gives states the right to reject the option entirely. It means, in other words, that the blue states get the public option at full strength and the red states get to ignore it entirely.
From a political perspective too, it's going to be difficult for states that oppose the public option to remain outside of its influence for long. If the public option does what most people think it will do - lower costs and expand coverage - then states that opt out are going to feel pressure to permit it in their exchanges, regardless of their ideological preferences.
I like this idea. Let's give it a whirl.
That gives you an essentially national administrative structure, but also gives states the right to reject the option entirely. It means, in other words, that the blue states get the public option at full strength and the red states get to ignore it entirely.
From a political perspective too, it's going to be difficult for states that oppose the public option to remain outside of its influence for long. If the public option does what most people think it will do - lower costs and expand coverage - then states that opt out are going to feel pressure to permit it in their exchanges, regardless of their ideological preferences.
I like this idea. Let's give it a whirl.
Small town newspaper wars
Lee Becker provided an interesting nugget in his coverage of a recent meeting of the Oconee County Commission. It seems the commission opted to advertise with The Oconee Leader for its next batch of citizen applications for committee appointments. The community has always advertised its public notices with The Oconee Enterprise in the past.
The Oconee Enterprise is the more established newspaper in the community, having served the area since 1884. The Oconee Leader, by contrast, is less than five years old.
Now, with all due respect to both journalistic institutions, it ain't like we're talking about The New York Times squaring off with The Washington Post. These are two small town papers that, while arguably well-connected to their local community, also lack in overall quality. That's more of a nature of the beast of small town papers and not necessarily a reflection of anything else, but it's important to keep in mind.
That said, The Oconee Enterprise is arguably more focused on providing local news coverage and analysis. Folks who get The Oconee Leader aren't looking to find out what happened at this week's commission meeting, but rather photos from festivals, fundraisers and the like. The only thing that even touches politics at the latter is the ridiculous rantings against socialism of Rob Peecher, and that's focused on national politics, not local politics.
And if Oconee County citizens wanted national coverage, they'd turn to a variety of other publications ... not a weekly start-up that intermingles national Republican politics with festival photos. And that's the primary reason that The Oconee Enterprise has remained the preferred choice in the community, though admittedly by default (and in contrast to The Oconee Leader's inflated circulation numbers which are so high because it's a free publication that is mailed out without solicitation).
As a result, it's completely foolish and short-sighted for the Oconee County Commission to begin advertising anything connected with local government with a publication that doesn't even cover the local government. Of course, as Lee noted in his post, what might be an underling driving factor is that The Oconee Enterprise has been a forceful critic of the local government's restructuring process and, in making its argument, regularly sensationalized one point of view over another. In addition, the newspaper regularly criticized those who adhered to the point of view not shared by its editorial staff.
Understandably, the affected commissioners should have been bothered by those developments, but switching where these notices are published shouldn't be motivated by policy disagreements.
As I said earlier, it makes little sense to switch advertisements that pertain to the local government to a publication that has no interest in actually covering the local government.
The Oconee Enterprise is the more established newspaper in the community, having served the area since 1884. The Oconee Leader, by contrast, is less than five years old.
Now, with all due respect to both journalistic institutions, it ain't like we're talking about The New York Times squaring off with The Washington Post. These are two small town papers that, while arguably well-connected to their local community, also lack in overall quality. That's more of a nature of the beast of small town papers and not necessarily a reflection of anything else, but it's important to keep in mind.
That said, The Oconee Enterprise is arguably more focused on providing local news coverage and analysis. Folks who get The Oconee Leader aren't looking to find out what happened at this week's commission meeting, but rather photos from festivals, fundraisers and the like. The only thing that even touches politics at the latter is the ridiculous rantings against socialism of Rob Peecher, and that's focused on national politics, not local politics.
And if Oconee County citizens wanted national coverage, they'd turn to a variety of other publications ... not a weekly start-up that intermingles national Republican politics with festival photos. And that's the primary reason that The Oconee Enterprise has remained the preferred choice in the community, though admittedly by default (and in contrast to The Oconee Leader's inflated circulation numbers which are so high because it's a free publication that is mailed out without solicitation).
As a result, it's completely foolish and short-sighted for the Oconee County Commission to begin advertising anything connected with local government with a publication that doesn't even cover the local government. Of course, as Lee noted in his post, what might be an underling driving factor is that The Oconee Enterprise has been a forceful critic of the local government's restructuring process and, in making its argument, regularly sensationalized one point of view over another. In addition, the newspaper regularly criticized those who adhered to the point of view not shared by its editorial staff.
Understandably, the affected commissioners should have been bothered by those developments, but switching where these notices are published shouldn't be motivated by policy disagreements.
As I said earlier, it makes little sense to switch advertisements that pertain to the local government to a publication that has no interest in actually covering the local government.
Couple of things
- Solid suggestions from the Athens Banner-Herald regarding SPLOST, and I'd like to suggest two other ones ... I'd like to see some flexibility in how the money is spent. For instance, there's no need to keep build infrastructure projects if the respective community lacks the resources to staff those projects. Why not 'split the penny' and allocate a portion of the money to funding the operating costs of the SPLOST projects for a certain number of years? Also, why not add 'human capital projects' to the SPLOST list and, in doing so, funding could be raised specifically for, say, a blighted housing renewal project or OneAthens's health care proposal?
- Myra Blackmon has a nice column on the importance of dialogue in the process.
- Mother of Mary ... who would have thought that Sen. Ralph Hudgens would be the voice of reason?
- I've always thought this was a cool idea, and I'm glad to see more and more families participating in it.
- Via Lee Becker, the Oconee County Commission will hold its first town hall meeting on Oct. 20 at the Civic Center.
- Myra Blackmon has a nice column on the importance of dialogue in the process.
- Mother of Mary ... who would have thought that Sen. Ralph Hudgens would be the voice of reason?
- I've always thought this was a cool idea, and I'm glad to see more and more families participating in it.
- Via Lee Becker, the Oconee County Commission will hold its first town hall meeting on Oct. 20 at the Civic Center.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
More on unemployment policy
Since we've been talking about strategies to tackle unemployment, I figured I might as well link to this commentary from The Atlantic which talks about helping out with state budgetary shortfalls ...
So what to do in 2009? (Gerald) Seib suggests that we marry a Republican plan to reward hiring firms with tax credits with a direct state stimulus plan, which would have biggest backing from Democrats. I like this idea for a couple reasons: 1) It combines tax incentives and the brute strength of government spending; 2) It targets some of the leading job-loss columns like education; 3) It stands a shot at bipartisan support.
Not a bad proposal, and I'm a proponent of having the federal government cover the various projected state shortfalls for the upcoming fiscal year, so this combines the earlier discussion with an additional strategy.
So what to do in 2009? (Gerald) Seib suggests that we marry a Republican plan to reward hiring firms with tax credits with a direct state stimulus plan, which would have biggest backing from Democrats. I like this idea for a couple reasons: 1) It combines tax incentives and the brute strength of government spending; 2) It targets some of the leading job-loss columns like education; 3) It stands a shot at bipartisan support.
Not a bad proposal, and I'm a proponent of having the federal government cover the various projected state shortfalls for the upcoming fiscal year, so this combines the earlier discussion with an additional strategy.
The possible sites
There are four options up for consideration to locate the proposed tennis center, including a new addition to the mix.
Satterfield Park has re-emerged as a possible candidate for two central reasons - it would consolidate athletic fields at one eastside location and would result in minimal impact on the upcoming SPLOST as, according to multiple sources, park officials were strongly considering applying for upcoming SPLOST funds for infrastructure improvements and facility expansions. Relocating those suspected expenditures at a more centralized location does make sense.
However, there figure to be various folks opposed to that move. For proponents of the tennis center, Satterfield Park is not located on a primary road. For longtime Satterfield Park patrons, this is a relatively unwelcome proposition that might frustrate a group of folks wanting to keep the existing facility for baseball use (and who, according to the article, are already getting a bit antsy).
And, of course, there is the fact that the Site Selection Committee didn't recommend Satterfield Park for a variety of reasons. Despite scoring 35 points, which was one of the higher tallies, the committee expressed numerous concerns ranging from its proximity to Ben Epps Airport, thus impacting the upcoming expansion of that facility, as well as noise and traffic.
As you see, then, there are positives and negatives to the new option, and I'm not sure which one ought to hold more value. However, it might be worthwhile to consider some alternatives to two existing options ...
- Utilize Bishop Park, but relocate the Athens Farmers Market to its rightful space ... at the old farmer's market site. That location is currently vacant and leased by Athens-Clarke County for $1 a year. Arguably, it needs some repairs and infrastructure improvements, but it's difficult to see how expensive those repairs are given that the AFM, you know, operates outside (I'm legimately curious to know exactly what type of condition the old market is in, so if anyone knows, shoot me an email).
- Acquire the Athens YWCO property and devote the balance of the funding to basic site preparation (as much as they will permit). Then, encourage both the YWCO and the various tennis organizations to reapply for SPLOST money, but tell them they must match the money allocated from the next round of funding. If done properly, it might be the type of public-private partnership needed in this area.
Arguably, these are two suggestions put forward with limited evidence and information, but - given that more than likely this is going to be an unpopular and difficult choice to make - it might be interesting to see what options like these could yield and how feasible they really are.
Satterfield Park has re-emerged as a possible candidate for two central reasons - it would consolidate athletic fields at one eastside location and would result in minimal impact on the upcoming SPLOST as, according to multiple sources, park officials were strongly considering applying for upcoming SPLOST funds for infrastructure improvements and facility expansions. Relocating those suspected expenditures at a more centralized location does make sense.
However, there figure to be various folks opposed to that move. For proponents of the tennis center, Satterfield Park is not located on a primary road. For longtime Satterfield Park patrons, this is a relatively unwelcome proposition that might frustrate a group of folks wanting to keep the existing facility for baseball use (and who, according to the article, are already getting a bit antsy).
And, of course, there is the fact that the Site Selection Committee didn't recommend Satterfield Park for a variety of reasons. Despite scoring 35 points, which was one of the higher tallies, the committee expressed numerous concerns ranging from its proximity to Ben Epps Airport, thus impacting the upcoming expansion of that facility, as well as noise and traffic.
As you see, then, there are positives and negatives to the new option, and I'm not sure which one ought to hold more value. However, it might be worthwhile to consider some alternatives to two existing options ...
- Utilize Bishop Park, but relocate the Athens Farmers Market to its rightful space ... at the old farmer's market site. That location is currently vacant and leased by Athens-Clarke County for $1 a year. Arguably, it needs some repairs and infrastructure improvements, but it's difficult to see how expensive those repairs are given that the AFM, you know, operates outside (I'm legimately curious to know exactly what type of condition the old market is in, so if anyone knows, shoot me an email).
- Acquire the Athens YWCO property and devote the balance of the funding to basic site preparation (as much as they will permit). Then, encourage both the YWCO and the various tennis organizations to reapply for SPLOST money, but tell them they must match the money allocated from the next round of funding. If done properly, it might be the type of public-private partnership needed in this area.
Arguably, these are two suggestions put forward with limited evidence and information, but - given that more than likely this is going to be an unpopular and difficult choice to make - it might be interesting to see what options like these could yield and how feasible they really are.
Somewhat on the contrary
My interest in a jobs creation tax credit is also decidedly measured, largely in part of criticism like this ...
But critics of the idea argue that businesses hire based on actual demand for their products, and a minor subsidy for adding an employee will not make up for the collapse in demand across the broader economy.
“Why would a business hire a new worker?” Bill Rys, tax counsel to the National Federation of Independent Business, a small-business industry group, said. “They’re hiring because they need to do work. Unless you have work to do, it’s still an expense.”
This, as well, has long been a central component of my criticism of this really working as an effective jobs creation program. If there's no demand, there's no legitimate rationale to hire additional personnel to meet said demand.
However, if the administration was clever, they would consider combining the jobs creation tax credit with a a voucher program modeled after the successful one employed in Taiwan. Issuing a voucher in November - and requiring they had to be spent by, say, January 31 - would result in an assured increase in consumer spending, thus resulting in a bump in demand and a need to bring on additional workers.
Given that most economists concede the recession has bottomed out, a combination of policies like these can help offer a solid rebound that might occur much sooner than hoped.
But critics of the idea argue that businesses hire based on actual demand for their products, and a minor subsidy for adding an employee will not make up for the collapse in demand across the broader economy.
“Why would a business hire a new worker?” Bill Rys, tax counsel to the National Federation of Independent Business, a small-business industry group, said. “They’re hiring because they need to do work. Unless you have work to do, it’s still an expense.”
This, as well, has long been a central component of my criticism of this really working as an effective jobs creation program. If there's no demand, there's no legitimate rationale to hire additional personnel to meet said demand.
However, if the administration was clever, they would consider combining the jobs creation tax credit with a a voucher program modeled after the successful one employed in Taiwan. Issuing a voucher in November - and requiring they had to be spent by, say, January 31 - would result in an assured increase in consumer spending, thus resulting in a bump in demand and a need to bring on additional workers.
Given that most economists concede the recession has bottomed out, a combination of policies like these can help offer a solid rebound that might occur much sooner than hoped.
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