Michael L. Lahr

The contributions of historic preservation to housing and economic development

Abstract Historic preservation contributes greatly to housing and economic development. Historic preservation has produced almost 250,000 housing units through use of the federal historic rehabilitation tax credit. Additionally, heritage tourism is a multibillion‐dollar industry, and preservation projects help further community revitalization. Historic preservation also has a downside. Preservations growing popularity may dilute its imperative and market prowess, and some argue it is used to thwart new development. Preservation requirements may impede affordable housing production and displace area residents. These undesirable consequences are not givens, however. Preservationists are working to become more flexible, and we suggest ways to practice historic preservation while mitigating some of its negative consequences—for example, tax credit changes, more flexible building codes, and a “tiered” system of designating historic properties at varying levels of significance.

A Review of the Literature Supporting the Hybrid Approach to Constructing Regional Input–Output Models

Fueled by the high costs of survey-based models and the inherent inaccuracies of non-survey models, a literature has emerged on hybrid regional input–output models. Although this literature has been instructive on the general approach that should be taken in the construction of such models, authors have provided little information about the precise methods they have used to idenfy. the portions of the models for which superior data are worth the effort to obtain. In addition, the role of non-survey techniques used to produce survey-based tables has not been well articulated in the literature. This paper reviews approaches that have been used in input—output analysis that might be adopted for use in constructing hybrid input–output models. It is argued that hybrid model constructors should pursue the most accurate non-survey model of their region as possible (use accurate regional purchase coefficients and minimize aggregation), always seek superior data for households and establishments in resource-based ...

Reconciling Domestication Techniques, the Notion of Re-exports, and Some Comments on Regional Accounting

Recent work by Jackson (1998) subtly pointed out a means of forming direct input coefficient matrices from national technology that is different from that published elsewhere. In this paper, I rationalize his approach and also point out that prior approaches may still be useful in certain applications where the phenomenon of re-exports (imports that satisfy exports) are explicit in exports accounts. In the second half of this paper, I show some means of developing regional accounts, currently being used in the US, that are more elaborate than those Jackson discussed. For example, I substitute regional shares of employment with earnings shares to obtain productivity adjusted regional output. I also suggest using available regional value added and regional labour income when producing regional Use matrices.

INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS: THE NEXT 25 YEARS

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the International Input–Output Association and the 25th volume of Economic Systems Research. To celebrate this anniversary, a group of eight experts provide their views on the future of input–output. Looking forward, they foresee progress in terms of data collections, methods, theory testing, and focus and scope.

Changes in China’s production-source CO 2 emissions: insights from structural decomposition analysis and linkage analysis

ABSTRACT This paper presents an input–output based methodology – structural decomposition analysis (SDA) plus linkage analysis, for identifying the key factors and sectors that affected production-source CO2 emissions in China. The proposed methodology extends the SDA to account for the import substitution effect within an open economy such as China and incorporates the emission linkage by which the effect of the input mix on CO2 emissions can be understood in depth. Empirical results indicate that, between 2005 and 2010, improving emission intensity and input intensity had helped to reduce CO2 emissions; meanwhile, capital investment explained the majority of the increases in CO2 emissions brought about by final demand, and import substitution was also observed to increase CO2 emissions. Moreover, nine key emission sectors have been identified, and in this regard, domestic inputs became more CO2-intensive in 2010 than it was in 2005.

Can The Carbonizing Dragon Be Domesticated? Insights From A Decomposition Of Energy Consumption And Intensity In China, 1987--2007

China has relied on energy to stimulate its booming economy. As a result, its share of world energy consumption rose to 17.3% in 2009 from 7.9% in 1978. Somewhat surprisingly, through 2000 its rate of energy consumption was about half its rate of economic growth. This trend changed after 2001 as energy consumption rose about 1.3 times more rapidly than did gross domestic product through 2005. Through heavy governmental influence, energy intensity subsequently reduced through 2007, but just marginally. This paper uses the structural decomposition approach to understand key drivers behind changes in Chinas energy intensity and its energy consumption from 1987 to 2007. In our model, energy intensity change was decomposed into five factors: changes in energy efficiency, changes in share of value added, changes in input structure, changes in consumption structure, and changes in consumption volume. This paper provides insights into how changes in Chinas economic structure, technology, urbanization, and lifestyle affect energy intensity and energy consumption.

A Top 10 List of Things To Know About American Cities

Strong job growth, a vigorous bull market, and other indicators are taken by many as evidence that the Nation is healthy and well positioned for the next century. Yet in recent decades income inequality has widened, poverty rates have remained high even during economic expansions, and disparities between cities and suburbs have grown more pronounced than ever before. In this article we draw on the Center for Urban Policy Research State of the Nations Cities database to document 10 prominent changes affecting large cities in the past 30 years. We show how the technological change, globalization, demographic trends, and selective flows of people, jobs, and wealth have magnified inequality at the regional, metropolitan, and neighborhood levels. Particularly for older industrial cities, the processes driving national growth continue to reinforce inequalities in opportunity for individuals and communities.

A Revision of the Tolerable Limits Approach: Searching for the Important Coefficients

Abstract A wide range of approaches are available for classifying coefficients according to their importance to an economy. The ‘tolerable limits’ approach is one that has been extensively written about. Nevertheless, it seems unsuitable for assessing the overall importance of a coefficient to an economy, but instead appears to be rather well suited for determining how much a selling sector depends upon its customers. We therefore suggest two alternative approaches for measuring a sectors importance to an economy. The first is an application of the concept of elasticity based on Sherman and Morrisons (1950) formula. The second approach applies linear programming. We compare these various alternatives using the domestic IO tables of eight European countries.

Mobility of Section 8 families in Alameda County

During the 1990s, Section 8 vouchers were touted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as the way to provide greater housing choice for the poor while deconcentrating them. Toward the end of the 1990s however evidence mounted that the voucher system was not deconcentrating the poor. In response HUD developed a set of five major demonstration programs that supplemented the vouchers with carious arrays of social services. While waiting for results from these programs to return, HUD discovered that Section 8 participants in local housing authorities in Alameda County, California, were experiencing an unexpected amount of interjuridictional modebility toward suburban locations. Using a local database of 16,591 Section 8 families, this paper presents a cursory examination into the motivations of their suburban mobility.

Challenges of green consumption in China: a household energy use perspective

ABSTRACT To encourage economic progress, Chinas government has been pushing domestic consumption as a substitute for its waning growth in investment and exports. It has also been promoting greener policies for growth, of which green consumerism is a prime component. By examining the economy through the lens of household energy consumption, this paper lays out the challenges the nation must overcome through green consumption. We explore the trends in household energy use and decompose energy used indirectly by households into six factors: changes in total population, urbanization rate, energy efficiency, interindustry input mix, household consumption preferences, and per capita household consumption level. Doing so yields insights into how progress in industrial technology, household income, urbanization, and lifestyles has affected energy use in the production of goods and services used by households. It also offers policy suggestions on how China might guide lifestyle changes to effect green consumption.