Publication Library

Browse by tag

referendum c state budget tabor fmap recovery act 2010 colorado legislature health reform medical loss ratio taxes jobs and economic security transparency and accountability revenue annual report colorado center on law and policy snap food stamps health coverage health affordability earned income tax credit children health law and policy update child tax credit exempla hospitals colorado benefits management system public benefits weston v hammons election 2010 poverty health insurance work supports self-sufficiency standard jobs and economy unemployment insurance health access mental health high-risk pool health co-ops pre-existing conditions medicaid aiming for the middle gallagher amendment amendment 23 public option 2009 colorado legislature grandfathered health plans cobra health insurance exchange income 2007 colorado legislature arveschoug-bird tobacco securitization federal budget rainy day fund refund anticipation loans 2008 colorado legislature welfare reform colorado works deficit reduction act citizenship referendum d 2010 colorado legislatutre old age pension tax credits tax exemptions tax deductions provider rates state of working colorado government election 2008 education income tax single sales factor state children's health insurance program social security early retiree reinsurance program hospital provider fee insurance access sustainable growth rate formula recission prescription drugs medicare false claims act colorado all-payer health claims database insurance affordability 2011 colorado legislature election 2011 immigration child health plan plus health law and policy refugees family economic security economic self-sufficiency hospital conversion sidebar newsletter elder economic security long-term care accountable care collaborative 2012 colorado legislature

Sign Up

Receive email updates

Thanks To Our
Generous Donors Like:

The Gill Foundation

Colorado Recovery Watch

The national unemployment rate increased in November, again approaching double digits. In Colorado, several thousand more people held jobs, but that was not enough to slow the rise of the unemployment rate to its highest level in more than a quarter-century. Enrollment growth in state food and health assistance programs continued unabated.

Unemployment
In November, Colorado’s unemployment rate increased to 8.6 percent, the highest state unemployment rate in 27 years.i The national unemployment rate also increased, to 9.8 percent. (Figure 1) In Colorado, the unemployment rate ranks 24th highest compared to other states, and the increase in unemployment since the beginning of the downturn in December 2007 ranks 22nd largest.ii

Employment
Recessionary employment losses in Colorado were dramatic, and low levels of employment have persisted well after the official end of the recession in June 2009. (Figure 2) Since the onset of the downturn (December 2007), Colorado has lost 140,900 jobs, or 6 percent of its nonfarm labor force. That loss ranks 18th worst in the country.iii In November, Colorado gained jobs for the third straight month (an increase of 3,800), but not enough to stop rising unemployment.

 

Job shortfall
Job shortfall is a calculation to help put longer-term changes in employment into context. It measures the difference between actual employment and what employment would need to be to keep up with population growth — in essence how far behind population growth state employment has fallen during a downturn. Tracking from the onset of the recession in December 2007 to November 2010, the Colorado job shortfall stands at 264,905 jobs. (Figure 3)

A central concept of job shortfall is that if the unemployment rate is to remain constant or improve, the number of jobs must keep up with or outpace population growth. That concept helps in part to explain why last month the state’s unemployment rate rose to a historic high even while several thousand more Coloradans found jobs.iv

 

Construction jobs
The construction sector was one of the hardest hit during the Great Recession, to date losing roughly one-third of total employment since the downturn began. (Figure 4) In November, Colorado construction employment increased by 1,000 jobs. (Figure 4)

 

Medicaid and CHP+
In recent years, Colorado has seen consistent and substantial caseload growth in Medicaid and the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+), programs that provide medical care for low-income residents and children, respectively. Enrollment growth in those programs accelerated during the recession and continues to outpace population growth. (Figure 5) In the current fiscal year, total Medicaid and CHP+ enrollment has grown by 13,506 as of September (the latest count). The Medicaid and CHP+ programs now serve a total of 611,258 Coloradans.v

 

Food assistance
The recession touched off a substantial need for the food assistance provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps. That need has outlived the official duration of the Great Recession. According to the most recent count in September, 424,878 Coloradans receive food stamps. (Figure 6) September’s count is up 564 individuals from August. This is a smaller than average monthly increase in enrollment, and it appears SNAP enrollment growth is slowing. (Figure 6) Overall, SNAP enrollment increased 71 percent since dramatic growth began with the onset of the recent recession.vi

 

‘Tis the season?
Colorado has now well surpassed its recessionary peak in unemployment, making its recovery look more like a relapse. Yet persistent, albeit weak job growth suggests the future is not as bleak as the unemployment picture might appear. One hopes the season of strong recovery is not far off.

Contact: Alec Harris
Policy analyst
303-573-5669, ext. 316

Released Dec. 20, 2010

| More

End notes
i Since February 1983. Analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics State and Local Area Unemployment data, Dec. 17, 2010.

ii Economic Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Current Employment Survey data.

iii Economic Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Current Employment Survey data.

iv Another key component is labor force dropout. Unemployed individuals who do not look for work are not counted in the unemployment rate. When conditions improve, individuals who had dropped out of the labor force often resume looking for jobs. If some of these people find work but even more look without success, the unemployment rate may go up even while employment increases as well.

v Analysis of “Premiums, Expenditures and Caseload Report,” Colorado Department of Health Care Policy Financing, October 2010 report.

vi Analysis of U.S. Department of Agriculture SNAP program data, provided by: “SNAP/Food /Stamp Participation Data,” Food Research and Action Center, Oct. 28, 2010.

 

View PDF Document