According to the 2013 Assets and Opportunity Scorecard, more Americans are at risk of financial crisis than many of us realize. These are the "liquid asset poor," or those who lack the savings to cover basic expenses for three months if unemployment, a medical emergency or other crisis leads to a loss of stable income. In Arizona, 45% of households live in liquid asset poverty and 61% of Arizona consumers have subprime credit. Additionally, 52% of renters in Arizona are "cost-burdened," meaning they spend more than 30% of household income on rent and utilities.
Featured Indicators Data
Arizonans At Risk
A Perspective on Global Money Flows
Check out this compelling data visualization, created by David McCandless for Information is Beautiful. It offers an interesting perspective on costs and money flows ranging from U.S. foreign debt and military spending to health care costs, the "war on drugs," and total charitable donations by the U.S. public. McCandless explains his creative motivation in the following blog post, "With news of $billion-dollar tax evasions joining $billion-dollar bailouts and $trillion dollar deficits in the mind-boggled group mind, we thought it might be a good time to update the Billion Dollar-o-Gram."
English Language Learners: What’s at Stake for AZ?
Last year marked the 20th anniversary of Flores v. Arizona, the original lawsuit regarding English learners in Arizona, but the task of providing efficient and effective English Language Learner (ELL) programs in Arizona remains unresolved. At stake overall, educators, business leaders and economic experts agree, is no less than the state’s future economic, health, social and education standing. Policies that affect ELL students impact all Arizonans. This brief examines the legal history, changing funding formulas and ELL student achievement.
Seleznow: Leadership made Arizona 'Poor by Choice'
In his address at the The Arizona Leadership Forum in Phoenix on Feb. 8, Arizona Community Foundation President & CEO Steven G. Seleznow makes the counter-intuitive case that the Arizona we now have essentially is the Arizona that the state’s powerful leadership wanted, even though the end result was many residents, schools, businesses and social agencies suffering. According to Seleznow, “I tried to make the point throughout my ‘confrontation with the data,’ that our decisions and options as a state were not the function of the 2008 recession at all, but the result of a powerful set of choices made by the state’s leadership beginning around 1980 and continuing since to drive down investment in those areas that would have supported economic growth, reduced income inequality, and developed the state’s human capital,” Seleznow recalled.
Assets and Opportunity Scorecard ranks Arizona among the 10 worst states
According to the Corporation for Enterprise Development's (CFED) latest Assets and Opportunity Scorecard, Arizona ranks 42nd among states and earns a "D" in categories like financial assets and income, businesses and jobs, and health care. CFED's research highlights the vulnerability of families, many of whom are living on the edge. Nationally, 44% of households are "liquid asset poor," having virtually no savings to rely on in the event of job loss, a health crisis, or other unforeseen financial challenges. Additionally, 56% of American consumers have subprime credit scores.
Arizona Directions: Fostering Data-Driven Dialogue in Public Policy
Arizona Directions is an annual statewide report card that is designed to make data actionable. This year's report homes in on the economy and education. It examines Arizona's economic development landscape, the competitive potential of the Sun Corridor, the economic consequences if the state fails to close the Latino achievement gap, and the role of career and technical education in adding skilled workers to Arizona's workforce pipeline. By examining our status, trajectories and potential responses in each of these areas, this report seeks to stimulate a candid assessment of our strengths and weaknesses, and of the policy options that will enable Arizona to prosper. The report includes new public opinion data from a statewide Morrison Institute Poll.
Recent Publications
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Indicator Insight 4 2
Wednesday, May 1, 2013 -
Indicator Insight 4 3
Tuesday, April 2, 2013 -
Special Report
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Indicator Trends
AZ Youth Face Tough Odds
According to the 2012 Kids Count Data Book, Arizona still compares unfavorably on key indicators of child well-being, ranking 5th worst overall.
Losing Ground:
- Children in poverty (24%)
- Children living in households with high housing cost burden (43%)
- Children in single-parent families (37%)
Making Progress:
- Teen births per 1,000 (51)
- Children without health insurance (13%)
- High school students not graduating on time (27%)
Collaborations
Brookings Mountain West
Morrison Institute for Public Policy and Brookings Institution are now partners in Brookings Mountain West, a collaboration of Brookings Institution and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas that conducts research on economic growth, demographic change, infrastructure improvement, environmental impact, alternative energy, and real estate investment in the Intermountain West. Check out the latest output from Mountain Monitor.
Join the Morrison Institute Mailing List
To join the Morrison Institute e-mail list, send us an email.
Demographics
Check out Population Basics, an interactive tool that allows you to explore demographic data about Arizona, our 15 counties, and metro Phoenix and Tucson. If you prefer raw data, explore the demographics section of our Google Spreadsheets collection:
Explore Arizona Demographics Data in Google SpreadsheetsMore to Explore
2010 Census Data
Quick Poll
Math and Science Education Poll
Do you think the amount of emphasis that Arizona public schools place on teaching math and science is about right, too much, or not enough?
