by Michael Pakko | Apr 5, 2023
In the final quarter of 2022, personal income increased at an annualized rate of 7.3%—keeping pace with the national growth rate of 7.4%. Compared to a year earlier, incomes were up 7.7% in Arkansas and 5.7% for the U.S. A breakdown by major components shows that Net...
by Michael Pakko | Apr 3, 2023
As this year’s legislative session winds down, a new tax cut proposal is on the agenda of the state legislature this week. The proposal would reduce the top marginal tax rate from 4.9% to 4.7%. This essay considers some of the features of the proposal. Arkansas...
by Michael Pakko | Mar 24, 2023
State-level data on employment and unemployment in February were mixed for Arkansas. Information from the household survey showed a sharp drop in the number of employed, and hence a drop in the unemployment rate from 3.4% to 3.2% (in contrast to the 0.2 percentage...
by Michael Pakko | Mar 17, 2023
New and revised data on metropolitan area employment and unemployment were released this morning from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. As was the case with the state-level data earlier this week, data from both the household and payroll surveys were subject to annual...
by Michael Pakko | Mar 13, 2023
The state-level report on employment and unemployment that was released today shows little change in current conditions or the near-term outlook for Arkansas. For example, the unemployment rate, at 3.4%, remains in the 3.5%+/- range in which it has fluctuated over...
