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61. Restoring Order: Practical Solutions to Congressional Dysfunction

Author:
Norman J. Ornstein and Thomas E. Mann
Publication Date:
11-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
The Framers of our nation created a political system built upon three vibrant, assertive, and active branches of government, with a series of checks and balances in place to make sure that no single branch or individual could accumulate too much power and threaten the rights and freedoms of citizens, and to create a deliberative process to make good public policy. Congress, the first branch of government, was designed to be the linchpin of this system, the body closest to the people, with the most robust specified powers.
Topic:
Development, Economics, and Politics
Political Geography:
United States

62. Corporate Citizenship and Urban Problem Solving: The Changing Civic Role of Business Leaders in American Cities

Author:
Royce Hanson, Hal Wolman, David Connolly, and Katherine Pearson
Publication Date:
09-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
Business-led civic organizations have historically played an important role in urban policymaking, planning, and renewal. These elite organizations of CEOs of the area's largest employers could quickly mobilize their members' personal devotion to the community, their deal making talent, and their ability to commit corporate financial resources to their city's emerging needs.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Emerging Markets, and Industrial Policy
Political Geography:
America

63. Building a Better New Orleans: A Review of and Plan for Progress One Year after Hurricane Katrina

Author:
Amy Liu
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
It has been one year since Hurricane Katrina struck the New Orleans area and the surrounding Gulf Coast. While longtime residents of these communities can easily rattle off the names of past hurricanes, “Katrina” will be emblazoned like no other. And for good reason: After accounting for all households and structures, Hurricane Katrina is the deadliest and costliest storm this country has ever seen, causing over 1,800 deaths to date and approximately $81.2 billion in total damage.
Topic:
Development, Disaster Relief, and Environment
Political Geography:
United States

64. Federal Allocations in Response to Katrina, Rita, and Wilma: An Update

Author:
Amy Liu and Matt Fellowes
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
Federal allocations in response to hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma now total $109 billion. Additionally, over $8 billion in tax relief is available. While these numbers appear quite large, widespread uncertainty exists over how much of this money has been spent and where.
Topic:
Development, Disaster Relief, and Environment
Political Geography:
United States

65. New Goals and Outcomes for Temporary Assistance: State Choices in the Decade after Enactment

Author:
Sean Fremstad and Margy Waller
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
State officials are spending Temporary Assistance funds quite differently from the early years after welfare reform. States now spend a majority of Temporary Assistance funds on benefits and services other than cash assistance, and the beneficiaries of these benefits and services include a substantial number of families who do not receive cash assistance.
Topic:
Development, Economics, and Humanitarian Aid
Political Geography:
United States

66. From Traditional to Reformed: A Review of the Land Use Regulations in the Nation's 50 largest Metropolitan Areas

Author:
Jonathan Martin, Robert Puentes, and Rolf Pendall
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
A key component of the struggle for prosperity in American metropolitan areas is development patterns, which define everything from density to the socioeconomic make up of residents. Development patterns are partly a consequence of decisions by local governments—often with very little coordination, oversight, or even guidance from state or regional entities—about the physical character of new growth. Among the most important of these decisions is how to regulate land; a prerogative that local governments guard jealously.
Topic:
Demographics, Development, and Environment
Political Geography:
United States and America

67. Special Edition of the Katrina Index: A One-Year Review of Key Indicators of Recovery in Post-Storm New Orleans

Author:
Amy Liu, Matt Fellowes, and Mia Mabanta
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
A review of dozens of key social and economic indicators on the progress of recovery in the New Orleans region since the impact of Hurricane Katrina finds that: Housing rehabilitation, and demolition, are well underway while the housing market tightens, raising rent and home prices. Across the most hard-hit parishes in the New Orleans area, the pace of demolitions has accelerated in the last six months while the number of permits issued for rehab has nearly doubled in the city. Yet, housing is less affordable as rent prices in the region have increased by 39 percent over the year and home sale prices have spiked in suburban parishes. Across the city, public services and infrastructure remain thin and slow to rebound. Approximately half of all bus and streetcar routes are back up and running, while only 17 percent of buses are in use, a level of service that has not changed since January. Gas and electricity service is reaching only 41 and 60 percent of the pre-Katrina customer base, respectively. The labor force in the New Orleans region is 30 percent smaller today than one year ago and has grown slowly over the last six months; meanwhile, the unemployment rate remains higher than pre-Katrina. The New Orleans metro area lost 190,000 workers over the past year, with the health and education services industries suffering the largest percentage declines. In the past six months, the region has seen 3.4 percent more jobs but much of that may reflect the rise in new job seekers. The unemployment rate is now 7.2 percent, higher than last August. Since last August, over $100 billion in federal aid has been dedicated to serving families and communities impacted by hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. In the meantime, the number of displaced and unemployed workers remains high. To date, the federal government has approved approximately $109 billion in federal aid to the Gulf Coast states most impacted by the storms. Of these funds, nearly half has been dedicated to emergency and longer-term housing. In the meantime, an estimated 278,000 workers are still displaced by the storm, 23 percent of whom remain unemployed.
Topic:
Development, Disaster Relief, Economics, and Environment

68. Lessons and Limits: Tax Incentives and Rebuilding the Gulf Coast after Katrina

Author:
Michael J. Rich and Robert P. Stoker
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
In the wake of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, Congress enacted legislation creating Gulf Opportunity Zones (GO Zones) in localities in Alabama, Louisiana, and Missis- sippi that suffered the most extensive storm damage. Special tax incentives created in these areas are designed to encourage investment, job creation, and economic growth. While many studies have been done to evaluate the effectiveness of federal and state tax-based efforts to redevelop distressed areas, none of the learning has been reflected in policy debates about the Katrina recovery effort. The evidence suggests that tax incentives alone are not enough—they work better when combined with good planning, local capacity-building, and good governance across sectors. This paper will summarize the purpose of the Gulf Opportunity Zone tax program and explain how this latest endeavor reflects the 25-year evolution of federal efforts to use tax incentives as a core tool for revitalizing distressed areas.
Topic:
Development, Disaster Relief, Economics, and Environment
Political Geography:
Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi

69. Tools to Avoid Disclosing Information About Individuals in Public Use Microdata Files

Author:
Cynthia Taeuber
Publication Date:
06-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
Statistical agencies walk a fine line to meet the needs of two sets of customers: those who demand more detailed data to better understand complex policy questions, and those who demand that their responses to surveys or their use of public services be kept confidential.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Government, and Science and Technology

70. Katrina and Rita Impacts on Gulf Coast Populations: First Census Findings

Author:
William H. Frey and Audrey Singer
Publication Date:
06-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
In the late summer of 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita wrought severe damage along much of the Gulf Coast, stretching from Alabama west - ward to Texas, with perhaps the most devastating consequences for the greater New Orleans area.
Topic:
Demographics, Development, Economics, and Environment