An article by JLF President and CEO John Hood appears in today’s WSJ. Although I honestly can’t see any improvement in employment out here in the mountains, Hood claims statewide, no matter which official method is used to calculate it, employment is up.
I don’t like to use the word “claims” on Hood, because he is more data-driven than most. Instead of giving you the proverbial “nother study” arriving at a foregone conclusion, he now studies studies, analyzing methods and compiling the results of more credible efforts. Check this out.
Anyway, Hood indicates it would be warped to conclude the recent legislative decision to terminate extended unemployment benefits was not responsible for the state’s climbing stats for labor-market participation that leave national averages in their dust. Refusal of Medicaid expansion, and a transitioning to a flat tax are also believed to be spurring the economy.
Moral Monday activists disagree.
