Per capita (per person) personal income is one important measure of the economic well being of a society. In 2002 Delaware per capita income was 18% above the nation ( see chart below ).   It has been downhill since then with 2019 seeing Delaware per capita income registering 4% below the nation.  What has happened? Delaware Per Capita Income as a Percent of the U.S. (GRAPH SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Economics Analysis)   Economists track personal income as three major components

Delaware's Economic Gap Dr. John E. Stapleford, Director | 6/11/2020 As shown in the chart below, since 1990 growth in total employment in Delaware kept pace with the nation until the 2007-08 recession. From that point onward the growth in Delaware employment has lagged the nation and the gap between the two is growing.   Between 2008 and 2019 Delaware employment increased 4.8% while jobs in the U.S. rose 8.2%. Similarly, Delaware output rose 8% while output across the nation

Thanks Pete! Dr. John E. Stapleford, Director | 6/11/2020 Delaware, like the nation, has experimented with two approaches to governance. Governor Pete DuPont believed that lower taxes and deregulation encouraged entrepreneurship and hard work. Governors Markell and Carney believe that government spending and regulations hold the key to a fair and prosperous society.   What does the data say?   A simple approach is to compare the economic performance of Delaware under eight ye

COVID and the Working Poor By  Dr. John Stapleford May 18, 2020 As of this date there have been officially 290 COVID related deaths in Delaware out of a population of 982,000.  This is a death rate of three one-hundred of one percent (.03%). There have been 7,870 confirmed COVID cases for an incidence rate of eight-tenth of one percent (.8%). The state government’s response, shutting down large portions of the Delaware economy, has been especially hard on the working poor.  

Unemployment during COVID-19 By  Dr. John Stapleford May 12, 2020 Officially, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), unemployment is the percent of the labor force that is actively looking for employment and cannot find it.   To be eligible for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits an individual has to be separated from their last job due to lack of available work.   Since many workers voluntarily leave jobs or are terminated for poor performance or fail to fi

What will be the impact of the Covid-19 virus on Delaware's economy?   There are two extreme views among economists regarding the U.S. economy. The first view anticipates a substantial recession similar to 2008-09. The second expects a severe dip in the second quarter of 2020 with a steady rebound thereafter.   I favor the severe dip scenario. The 2008-09 recession was prolonged because there were extreme price distortions in residential and capital markets that took time to

DE School Choice Dr. John E. Stapleford, Director | 2/5/2020 According to the Wall Street Journal, Republican Ron DeSantis owes his gubernatorial victory in Florida to the support of about 100,000 African American women who were advocates for school choice. Of the roughly 650,000 black women who voted in the Florida election, 18% chose Mr. DeSantis. Could this happen in Delaware?   Certainly, the Delaware public schools have not delivered to the black community. According to

If the objective of Delaware’s economic development efforts is jobs, the available data may provide a logic for allocating development resources.   Over any particular year, the net change in employment comes from business start-up and expansion minus business closures and contractions. For 2015-16 the Census records a net change in employment for Delaware of 3,621. This comes from 17,758 jobs from start-ups and 34,893 from expansions minus a loss of 14,092 from closures and

A Gross Tax Dr. John E. Stapleford, Director | 1/25/2020 Delaware is one of just five states that levies a gross receipts tax (GRT). A GRT is an excise tax on the gross revenues of a company regardless of whether that company has profits or losses.   Public finance economists view the GRT as inefficient and unsound. It double or triple taxes business-to-business sales within a state. It punishes firms with low profit margins and high production volumes and discourages start-u

Delaware's 40-year experiment: pro-growth vs. anti-growth policies By Charlie Copeland  (pictured) Center for Analysis of Delaware's Economy & Government Spending January 21, 2022 (Listen to radio interview ===>  Mike Bradley with Charlie Copeland from The Caesar Rodney Institute – 01-25-22 )     In 1980, the US and Delaware economies were in shambles. Forty years later, at the end of 2020, the US and Delaware economies were again suffering because of the global pandemic. Th