Understanding the role of economic forecasts in a city’s budgeting process will be a topic at Hometown Legislative Action Day in Columbia on February 6. The session will feature Laura Dawson Ullrich, senior regional economist at the Charlotte branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
She has previously served as an associate dean for undergraduate programs and a professor of economics at Winthrop University. Ullrich's research interests include higher education, school finance reform, local and state level tax and expenditure analyses, and the economic impact of local development.
Ullrich said she would address key factors for cities and towns like economic growth, gross domestic product and inflation — all of which she said have impacts on property tax revenues, local employment rates and municipal budgets, “especially as the state of South Carolina grows.”
These key economic indicators, she said, play a critical role in many aspects of municipal budgeting.
“It impacts economic development, demand on infrastructure,” she said. “I think it’s all very relevant but it’s especially relevant when considering tax revenues.”
The economic factors have also shown an urban and rural divide, with some areas seeing much greater population and commercial growth than others, a trend that is likely to continue.
Find the full agenda and details for Hometown Legislative Action Day.