Coronavirus’s Impact in New York State – The Curve Flattens

Although Coronavirus cases continue to increase in New York State, the rate at which they are increasing is slowing, most likely because the State and Federal actions requiring social isolation have slowed the transmission of the disease. The decrease in the rate of increase is evident in both downstate and upstate metropolitan areas. But, the […]

Coronavirus’s Upstate Impact

There is much that we do not know about the course of the Covid-19 pandemic. Because testing has been severely limited, and available only to health care workers and hospital patients in most cases, we don’t know the real extent of the virus in the community. Because the virus is new, and public health interventions […]

Local Leaders’ Role in Combating the Economic Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic

The Covid-19 health response has shut down New York’s local economies. With most business activities on pause, local government leaders should be addressing the economic impact now and preparing for the time when businesses are permitted to reopen. To date, the health impact of the virus in Upstate New York has been less severe than […]

Countering the Economic Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic

We have seen alarming estimates of the potential impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on disease and death, as well as on our economy. Some have suggested that more than half of our population could be infected – more than 160 million people and that one or two percent of those could die. The President’s Treasury […]

The (Sometimes Un-)Affordable Care Act

Consider four families of four with two children living near Albany, New York. The breadwinners in the family had recently taken jobs that do not offer health insurance. As the Affordable Care Act was written, they were required to purchase health insurance. Families one and two earn nearly the same incomes. Family one has a […]

Income Inequality in Metropolitan Areas

In many respects, the American economy has done extraordinarily well since the great recession of 2008. We have seen a long period of growth in employment, while unemployment has dropped to levels not seen in many decades. But this period has also seen a troubling increase in income polarization, which has left typical workers with […]

A Closer Look at Student Performance in Upstate City Schools

Parents in central cities seeking good educations for their children face the disconcerting reality that relatively few city school children pass standardized tests required by New York State, suggesting that the schools are failing. In Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse and Schenectady, less than 20% of students passed state required English Language Arts and Mathematics exams in 2016 […]

Education, Economic Status and Student Performance in New York School Districts

Note: A more recent, closer look at this subject may be found here: https://policybynumbers.com/a-closer-look-at-student-performance-in-upstate-city-schools In 1966, James S. Coleman and associates wrote the report, “Equality of Educational Opportunity,” for the United States Department of Health Education and Welfare, as required by the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The report was commissioned to examine the causes […]

Rochester’s Broken School System

Kent Gardner argues forcefully in the Rochester Beacon that Rochester’s school system is broken and in need of radical change. Gardner’s post highlights the efforts of a local organization, ROC the Future, to bring about reform of the city’s school system. Gardner is correct – students in the city’s schools do poorly compared to others […]

New York’s Local Revenue Sharing Aid Program is Broken: How to Fix It

Most New Yorkers are aware that the state has a cap on local property taxes that has effectively slowed their growth. But few know that residents of a few large cities benefit from a multi-million-dollar infusion of state dollars that limits property taxes, while residents of smaller cities, towns and villages get far less help. […]