New consumer spending patterns fuel investment in entertainment venues.
Future in Context
Future in Context
The unknowns keep piling up. The stakes are too high to let that continue.
The state grew by more than 67,000 people in 2023, quelling concerns about the “California exodus” during the pandemic. California lost about 264,500 fewer people to other states last year than in 2021.
After borrowing billions from the federal government to pay for unemployment during the pandemic, the state’s debt now stands at about $21 billion and growing. The state also currently accounts for about 20 percent of the nation’s unemployment.
Only about 16 percent of Florida adults are up to date on their COVID-19 vaccines, compared to 23 percent nationally. Experts urge the elderly, who make up 91 percent of deaths in the state, to get vaccinated.
After shedding nearly 1 million jobs, staffing levels are now higher than at the start of 2020. But severe shortages remain in several fields such as nursing, public safety and education.
New Jersey is the only state to commission an independent review of its COVID-19 actions. The 900-page report details the effects on public health infrastructure and recommends changes to prevent the state from being blindsided again next time.
In a sweeping State of the Union address before Congress, the president spotlighted the economic comeback under his administration and offered his plans for the future.
Only 92 percent of U.S. adolescents are vaccinated against measles and a 95 percent vaccination rate is needed to create herd immunity. So far in 2024, the CDC has reported 35 cases in 15 jurisdictions.
Last May, Oregon became the first state to veer away from the CDC’s COVID-positive recommendations to stay home for five days and wear a mask for another five. Now, the CDC is considering revising its policy to follow Oregon’s.
Companies are still trying to get their workers back into offices across the nation, while the percentage of San Antonians working from home continues to decline. By comparison, more than twice the share of workers are still remote in Austin.
Washington provided $800 billion in pandemic relief. With most of that money spent, states now face major funding gaps for Medicaid, while school districts, child care providers and transit agencies are also struggling.
The state has settled a lawsuit filed on behalf of low-income students of color from Oakland and L.A. They claimed the state offered insufficient support for remote learning.
A report found that one-third of parents are concerned about the COVID-19 shutdown’s long-term impact on their child’s education, both academically and socially.
We’re now experiencing the second-biggest wave of infections since omicron. Yet we cling to complacency and the false belief that the virus will burn out and go away.
More than $5.8 billion of the $7.8 billion in federal funds awarded to Illinois schools since March 2020 has been spent. In Chicago, the school system faces a $391 million shortfall for the 2024-25 school year.
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