Two years ago this past July, a historic flood swept over counties in eastern Kentucky. Nearly 9,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, and 44 people died. Despite the devastation, however, families have persevered and remained resilient. According to community leaders of this Appalachian region, rebuilding is still ongoing as residents eagerly await additional new construction in response to the continued housing shortage.
Residents’ testimonies underscore how communities experience the economy differently and at various paces of growth and change. In the past few months, our team has also
documented how smaller communities are navigating ups and downs—and for some, downs and ups—in federal funding
tracked what community college enrollment looks like this fall (see the Cleveland Fed’s latest entries to the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, a summary of economic and community conditions from civic and business contacts across the United States)
opened the annual Small Business Credit Survey to better understand how small business owners are accessing credit (if you are an owner, we invite you to take the survey here)
The diversity of experiences among our communities is vast. As our new president, Beth Hammack, steps into her role, we value and appreciate her desire and willingness to meet with people across the Fourth District because we know that understanding the issues is an important step in being able to respond to them.
As always, thank you to all our community members and partners who keep us committed to better understanding lower-income communities and the lived experiences of residents and to connecting you to information, tools, and resources that can make a difference.
The Federal Reserve’s 2024 Small Business Credit Survey is now open. If you are an owner or key financial decisionmaker of a for-profit business, please share your recent experiences— Take the 12-minute survey now!The survey is open to businesses currently in operation, those recently closed, and those about to launch. All responses are confidential.
The survey closes November 1, 2024. Questions? Contact Hal Martin.
"Daycare is the first steppingstone to having a job"
Learn how communities, from parents to organizations to those in the childcare industry, are dealing with childcare challenges and creating opportunities for caregivers to work. Read our new childcare multimedia story.
Access to affordable housing continues to decrease
In the most recent Community Issues Survey (CIS), 74% of respondents said the availability of affordable housing had continued to decrease over the past six months. This is the highest share since the first CIS in March 2018. Explore our landing page to see updates to the Low- and Moderate-Income (LMI) Indices and other key findings from the September 2024 survey.
Affordable Housing and Quality Neighborhoods
"How do we do more with more?"
While most pandemic relief funds have expired, other large-scale programs present new funding opportunities for nonprofits and local governments that serve disadvantaged people and places. Learn how organizations are navigating this complex environment and connect to helpful resources.
How neighborhoods influence workforce productivity
A significant share of higher-income Black and Hispanic households live in neighborhoods that are more reflective of their racial and ethnic similarities than their income. Find out what this could mean for the future labor force of the United States.
The eastern Kentucky floods of July 2022: A recovery update
Two years after major flooding in the commonwealth, rebuilding has been slow, but “people are going to start to see things happening this summer and fall,” according to a nonprofit leader in the Appalachian region.Find out more about the road back.
Small Business
Small businesses reveal aftershocks from government loan programs
Many small businesses turned to assistance from the government to weather the most challenging days of the COVID-19 pandemic following its onset in March 2020. One of the largest government programs administered through the US Small Business Administration was the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, which provided $380 billion in loans to small businesses. Data from the Federal Reserve’s Small Business Credit Survey show that, compared to firms without EIDL loans, firms with outstanding EIDL balances in 2023 were more likely to experience challenges making payments on debt in the year leading up to the survey and were less likely to be profitable. See additional findings and the breakdown in a new report.
Fed report: Small business leaders reveal conditions and challenges of 2023
A small business report from the Federal Reserve suggests a further decrease of effects from the COVID-19 pandemic and a modest improvement in small business conditions. Still, small businesses continue to face headwinds. See how small employer firms were faring in 2023 and their outlooks for 2024 in the 2024 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2023 Small Business Credit Survey.
New data highlights small business challenges in Cleveland
Compared to small businesses across Ohio, Cleveland business owners faced similar financial and operational challenges in 2023 but were less likely to use cash reserves. Read more.
Chartbooks now available with latest data by firm type and geography
Analyzing small business data across firm and owner characteristics can provide a helpful framework for understanding business experiences and credit outcomes. The 2024 Firms in Focus chartbooks (including data for Cleveland and data broken down by state, including for Pennsylvania and Ohio) arenow available.
Are you a nonprofit who works with or supports small businesses? Clickhereto learn more about becoming a partner.
Workforce
Job growth tilted toward high-wage industries
This District Data Briefsuggests that, both nationally and across Fourth District states, job growth has generally been skewed toward high-pay industries since the COVID-19-related recession began in February 2020.
Exploring US career pathways
An updated tool from the Philadelphia and Cleveland Feds sheds light on career paths for nearly 600 occupations across 500-plus US locations by enabling users to visualize how skills needed for lower-paying jobs can transfer to similar jobs with higher pay. Check it out now.
Strong growth among lower-wage workers narrows wage inequality in Ohio
In Ohio, the trend of relatively weak wage growth for lower-wage workers has reversed recently. This has resulted in the lowest wage inequality in more than two decades, with lower-wage workers seeing notably stronger real wage gains during 2019 to 2023 than for others throughout the wage distribution. Read more.
Does self-employment live up to expectations?
Many workers without a four-year degree turn to self-employment, including gig work, with the hopes of earning extra income and gaining agency over their work. But is the reality of self-employment living up to the dream? Read more in Worker Voices.
Save the date: Policy Summit 2025
Mark your calendars and stay tuned for updates on Policy Summit 2025: Building Strong and Sustainable Communities. Follow for more updates here.
External Events
Team NEO Aligning Opportunities 2024: FastBreak to Success: Pathways to Economic Vibrancy
