Despite the widely documented benefits of enrolling and completing a college degree, postsecondary enrollment has been declining overall since fall 2010. Declines in the number of individuals enrolling in college are worrisome to the colleges themselves, and researchers and the press wrote of the impending enrollment “crisis” prior to the Covid-19 pandemic (e.g., Grawe, 2017; and Bloomberg, 20... Read More
Rising agricultural land values, diminishing farmland availability, and limited access to credit are primary barriers to entry for new farmers. Socially disadvantaged and women farmers and ranchers often face their own hurdles, including discrimination. And next-generation farmers are not immune to issues of land values and credit as they take over operati... Read More
The Chicago Fed’s 36th annual Economic Outlook Symposium was held on December 2, 2022, where participants provided their insights and perspectives on the health of the economy in 2022 and forecasts for 2023. Charles Evans, president of the Chicago Fed, kicked off the event by highlighting the long history of the symposium and describing some of the notable economic challenges facing the Midwest... Read More
Americans are failing to claim tens of millions of dollars held in Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), one reason why experts are calling for changes in a system that is not providing retirement security for a significant number of households. Also contributing to the challenges facing retirees: 401(k) plans–which have replaced pensions for much of the nation’s wo... Read More
The 16th annual Community Bankers Symposium, held on Friday, October 21, 2022, focused on the headwinds and tailwinds affecting community bankers, with a special focus on the impact of cybertechnology and the risk of cyber threats banks face in today’s rapidly changing environment. The event was hosted jointly by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (FRB Chicago), the Federal Deposit Insuranc... Read More
The motor vehicle industry is facing a momentous paradigm shift away from cars and trucks powered by the internal combustion engine (ICE) toward those powered by electricity. There are a number of environmental policy reasons—notably, the goal to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector—helping to drive this technological transfor... Read More
The 2008 financial crisis and the recession that followed saw unemployment soaring and house prices declining. The unemployment rate remained stubbornly high during the recovery that started in 2010. One factor that helps us to understand the slow pace of the recovery is the lack of internal migration to better job markets within the United States. While substantial internal migration flows have ... Read More
Our second Economic Mobility Project virtual event brought economics and policy professionals together to discuss the racial wealth gap in America — and how discriminatory twentieth century housing policies have compounded over generations to affect the wealth of individuals and families today. Watch the full event 2:04 - Economic Facts about the U.S. Weal... Read More
In August 2020, after a nearly two-year review, the Federal Reserve released an important update to the monetary policy framework that guides its work. Under the new framework, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will continue to pursue maximum employment, as directed by its dual mandate, and will consider maximum employment “a broad-based and inclusive goal.” On April 7, 2022, the Economic... Read More
Throughout the pandemic, the Chicago Fed has heard that the need to address learning and opportunity gaps for youth is a first-order concern for their well-being and future success. Fortunately, though the pandemic presented innumerable disruptions and challenges for schools and students, it also created opportunities for educators and communities to innovate. In a recent FedListens event, organ... Read More
