All Publications

Kentucky Annual Report

Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2024
Michael T. Childress

This report is one of the important ways that the Center for Business and Economic Research fulfills its mission to examine various aspects of the Kentucky economy

PDF: PDF icon CBER AER 2024 WEB.pdf

Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2023
Michael T. Childress

This report is one of the important ways that the Center for Business and Economic Research fulfills its mission to examine various aspects of the Kentucky economy. The analysis and data presented here cover a variety of topics that range from an economic forecast for Kentucky in 2023 to a broad presentation of factors affecting the economy.

PDF: PDF icon UK CBER Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2023_Web.pdf

Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2022
Michael W. Clark, Michael T. Childress

This report is one of the important ways that the Center for Business and Economic Research fulfills its mission to examine various aspects of the Kentucky economy. The analysis and data presented here cover a variety of topics that range from an economic forecast for Kentucky in 2022 to a broad presentation of factors affecting the economy.

PDF: PDF icon CBER 2022 Kentucky Annual Economic Report_Web.pdf

Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2021
Michael T. Childress, Michael W. Clark

This report is one of the important ways that the Center for Business and Economic Research fulfills its mission to examine various aspects of the Kentucky economy. The analysis and data presented here cover a variety of topics that range
from an economic forecast for Kentucky in 2021 to a broad presentation of factors affecting the economy.

PDF: PDF icon CBER 2021 Kentucky Annual Economic Report.pdf

2020 Kentucky Annual Economic Report
Michael T. Childress

This report is one of the important ways that the Center for Business and Economic Research fulfills its mission to examine various aspects of the Kentucky economy. The analysis and data presented here cover a variety of topics that range
from an economic forecast for Kentucky in 2020 to a broad presentation of factors affecting the economy.

PDF: PDF icon 2020_KY_Annual_Economic_Report.pdf

Issue Brief

Impact of the Coronavirus Pandemic on Housing
Bethany L. Paris

How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted housing across the United States and Kentucky? This policy brief examines one of the seconary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, beyond the broader economy and health, by looking at housing security in Kentucky and the United States overall. Using data from the Pulse Household Survey and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we review households' payment status, likelihood of foreclosure or eviction, and employment between April and December 2020.

PDF: PDF icon COVID Housing_Final.pdf

Research Report

Kentucky Public Schools as Educational Bright Spots
Michael T. Childress

Building on the previous work with school disctircs and using school-level data, this paper discusses the estimated expected level of school-level performance using district-level fixed effects. From this broad range of student outcomes, family and community backgrounds, and school characteristics, we identify schools that have performed better than expected—which we refer to as “bright spots.”

PDF: PDF icon School Bright Spots Final Report SEPT02_2020.pdf

The Effects of Opioids on Kentucky’s Workforce
Michael W. Clark, Jenny Minier, Charles Courtemanche, Bethany L. Paris, Michael T. Childress

Opioid abuse represents a significant and growing public health issue for both the nation and Kentucky. In 2016, opioids contributed to more than 62,000 deaths nationally and 1,406 deaths in Kentucky. National studies have placed the societal costs of opioid abuse at $55.7 billion in 2007 and $78.5 billion in 2013 (Birbaum et al. (2011) and Florence et al. (2016)). These costs included increased health care expenditures, higher criminal justice costs, and lost earnings due to reduced employment and premature deaths. The While House Council of Economic Advisors (2017) estimated the societal costs of opioid abuse to be much higher when the value of lives lost are included. They estimated the cost of opioid abuse to be $504 billion in 2015.

Growth in opioid abuse creates fiscal pressures for state and local agencies by increasing the needs for foster care, health care, criminal justice programs, and many other types of public services. Because opioid abuse can also reduce employment and earnings, it adds to these fiscal pressures by reducing tax collections.

PDF: PDF icon UK CBER The Effects of Opioids on Kentuckys Workforce 2019.pdf

The Effect of Smoking on Kentucky’s Workforce
Michael W. Clark, Jenny Minier, Charles Courtemanche, Bethany L. Paris, Michael T. Childress

Smoking has been estimated to increase health care costs in the United States by $167.5 billion annually (Xu et al. 2015). In Kentucky, smoking adds $2.5 billion in health care expenditures each year. Most of these costs were paid by public programs such as Medicaid and Medicare. While these costs are significant, they represent only a portion of the costs that smoking imposes on society. Smoking also leads to poorer labor market outcomes. Smokers are more likely to be unemployed, earn lower wages, and die prematurely than non-smokers. These negative labor market effects reduce economic activity and lower tax revenues, adding to the social costs and fiscal impact that smoking imposes.

PDF: PDF icon UK CBER The Effect of Smoking on Kentucky's Labor Market.pdf

The Economic Impact of Diabetes in Kentucky
Michael W. Clark, Jenny Minier, Charles Courtemanche, Bethany L. Paris, Michael T. Childress

Diabetes represents a growing health concern for the nation and Kentucky. It is a chronic condition that causes blood sugar levels to rise and contributes to other serious health conditions such as heart and kidney disease. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists diabetes as the 7th leading cause of death in the nation. The disease imposes significant costs on the country’s economy. The American Diabetes Association estimates that the U.S. spends $237 billion annually on diabetes-related health care. In addition, diabetes also adversely affects the nation’s workforce. As the disease progresses, individuals may find it more difficult to work. This can reduce employment, productivity, wages, and tax revenue.

PDF: PDF icon UK CBER The Economic Impact of Diabetes in Kentucky.pdf