Great Recession

After Belt Tightening, Some States Are Back In The Black

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:30:00 +0000

Across the country, state budgets are back in the black after years of belt-tightening and spending cuts. From California to Florida, in nearly every state, the economic recovery has produced a surge in tax revenue.

For governors and state legislators, that's produced a new question: how to spend the money.

The past three years have not been easy ones for elected officials. Nearly every state requires them to produce a balanced budget.

FDIC Goes Underground To Shore Up Insurance Fund

Erin OToole and Jerd Smith — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:30:00 +0000

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has launched a new national program to retain mineral rights on lands it has taken back as a result of foreclosures and bank failures.

Pew: Wealthiest Experience Big Boost In Post-Recession Worth

Scott Neuman — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 18:05:00 +0000

Some 93 percent of Americans saw their mean net worth fall in the first two years of the post-recession recovery, while the remaining 7 percent increased net worth by nearly a third, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of Census Bureau data.

The upper 7 percent (8 million households) had net worth above $836,033, and the 93 percent (111 million households) represented households whose worth was at or below that.

'American Winter' Families Struggle To Survive Fall From Middle Class

Karen Grigsby Bates — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:26:00 +0000

It's a visual no parent wants to picture: a child describing what it's like to live in a house with no power for lights, heat or cooking. For many middle-class American parents, it's hard to imagine their family ever facing a situation like that.

The Scariest Jobs Chart Ever Isn't Scary Enough

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 20:32:00 +0000

One of the defining graphs of our time (yes, there are defining graphs of our time) comes from the blog Calculated Risk. It tracks the job market in every U.S. recession and recovery since WWII — and it shows just how brutal the the past few years have been.

Business Insider calls this the Scariest Jobs Chart Ever.