What are you paying attention to in 2010?

When we start a new year, we often think about what happened in the past year and what we want to do in the coming one. Well, we have a long to-do list at the Economy League for 2010, as we celebrate our 100^th year with our World Class Initiative, the 2010 Greater Philadelphia Leadership Exchange to the San Francisco Bay Area, and a number of projects that we'll be telling you more about in the near future.

I'd like to offer five areas of activity I'll be paying attention to in 2010, along with some helpful links that I follow in tracking developments.

The Economy - Most economists say that we are out of the recession, but that the recovery will be slow, unemployment will continue to rise, and that there remains a risk of a double-dip to the recession. So, what will happen? Will the federal government need to put forward a second stimulus plan, focused on job growth? Or since the first stimulus has been slower to develop (and spend its money), will we begin to see that impact this year? A couple of good sites I use to track ongoing economic activities include:

• Calculated Risk  - A blog with a wealth of statistics and comparisons, written in an accessible and understandable way.
• Philadelphia Federal Reserve Research and Data - Statistical analysis and reports from the economists at Philadelphia's Federal Reserve Bank, with an emphasis on the Greater Philadelphia region.
• Select Greater Philadelphia's Coincident Index  - Developed by Select Greater Philadelphia and HIS Global insight, the Coincident Index shows the current direction of regional economic activity.

Government Budgets - 2009 was a very difficult year for our state and local government budgets. Newspapers were filled with stories of budget impasse and crisis, and many organizations were affected by budget cutbacks at all government levels. Most observers believe that 2010 and 2011 will be even worse, as many of the one-time fixes have been used and the full impact of rising unemployment, sluggish sales, and a diminished real estate market come into play. While the big stories are about the states and big cities, pay attention to smaller local governments and school districts as well where falling property values and transactions are playing havoc with long-term plans. Some resources to track include:

• Pennsylvania Budget Office
• New Jersey  Office of Management and Budget
• Delaware Budget Office 
• Rockefeller Institute at SUNY Albany  - great info on national state budget trends.
• It's Our Money blog - from the Philadelphia Daily News and WHYY on City of Philadelphia finances and government issues.

Pennsylvania Governor's Race - For the past seven years, Greater Philadelphia has had native son Ed Rendell as Pennsylvania's governor. This year's open seat race promises significant change, and it is uncertain what that will mean for the Greater Philadelphia region. Pay attention to the Economy League's IssuesPA site for a new and revamped look later this year, but you may also want to check out these sites as well:

• PA 2010 - for news and information on the political side of election.
• Capitol Ideas blog - by Allentown Morning Call reporter John Micek - an interesting and insightful look into PA politics.
• Floyd Institute's Center for Opinion Research at Franklin and Marshall College  - Website documenting the opinion research work of uber-pollsters Terry Madonna and Berwood Yost (formerly the Keystone Poll) - stay tuned for their take on the 2010 races.

Health Care Reform Impact - In a region with a strong set of life sciences industries, this region's economy has a huge stake in the outcome and implementation of federal health care reform. Each sector will be impacted differently, and it remains uncertain what the final verdict will be for our region. A few  places to track regional developments in this issue include:

• Pennsylvania Bio  - The source of information on PA's Biosciences industries.
• Also see BioNJ - New Jersey's PABio counterpart.
• Delaware Valley Health Care Council  - an association of health care providers in the Greater Philadelphia region.
• Health Care Improvement Foundation  - dedicated to improving health care safety in the region (full disclosure- I am on HCIF's Board).

Sustainability Issues - While we continue to debate how to deal with issues of energy, the environment, and global warming, it is clear that economic opportunities will arise out of the sustainability movement. In Pennsylvania, the lifting of the electricity rate caps is changing the energy game, while at the same time entrepreneurs, foreign investors, and the burgeoning Marcellus Shale natural gas industry are changing the face of the state's energy landscape. On the transportation front, we're looking to Harrisburg to identify the funds needed to fully fund Act 44, while we also wonder whether Washington will move forward on transportation reauthorization. A couple of cool sites include:

• Ben Franklin Technology Partners of SEPA's  Alternative Energy and Clean Technology Program  - documents news and funding opportunities in the energy and clean tech worlds.
• DVRPC's long range plan, Connections 2035 - lays out an aggressive land preservation and sustainability agenda across the region's nine counties.
• Brookings's Metropolitan Policy Center  - provides timely research and forward looking proposals to grow our metropolitan economies. Its proposal for a federal capital budget and national infrastructure bank seems to make a lot of sense.

Here's to a great 2010! We can truly make this a great region by paying attention to the signals the world is giving us and making sure that our plans and strategies are adaptable, flexible, and forward looking!

-- Steve Wray, Executive Director