Date: 08/21/2013

Final
Presentation: Steps to Economic Well-Being Index

ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY POVERTY REDUCTION TASK FORCE

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
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03:44 PM -- Presentation: Steps to Economic Well-Being Index

Larson Silbaugh, Legislative Council Staff, introduced himself to the committee and provided background information on the process of calculating an economic well-being index. He explained the current deficiencies with federal poverty line metrics, and stated that an economic well-being index instead looks at whether a person has overall good economic well-being. He told the task force members that an index itself does not having meaning unless it is compared to another value of that index. He talked about other well-known indexes and explained elements of the memorandum that he distributed to committee members (Attachment C). Mr. Silbaugh stated that a variety of variables can be included in an economic well-being index, including: income, health care, shelter, child care, employment, transportation, food, and education. He discussed the difficulties with using income as a variable in an index and explained that decisions must be made about how to weight each variable that is included in calculating the index.

13EconPov0821AttachC.pdf13EconPov0821AttachC.pdf

03:52 PM

Mr. Silbaugh continued to discuss the examples outlines in the memorandum (Attachment C) and explained how an index with multiple variables can help identify weaknesses across different communities. He stated that another element to consider is which benchmarks to use when comparing how a specific county compares to the state as a whole, or to itself in a previous time period, or when comparing it to a specific goal. He said that when measuring a county against a statewide average, certain problems may arise. He discussed the need to use subjective judgement when determining the purpose of implementing an economic well-being index, as well as the limitations associated with only using an income variable to measure poverty as opposed to a more comprehensive approach.


03:59 PM

Mr. Silbaugh responded to questions from the committee regarding statistical significance and how this might impact the interpretation of data. Senator Kefalas discussed the need to determine what the assumptions of the economic well-being index should be, in a bipartisan manner. Mr. Silbaugh answered questions regarding how to handle issues of missing or outdated data when implementing an index. He explained that one can more easily determine assumptions if there is data from longer periods of time to examine. Senator Kefalas reiterated the need for the task force to determine what assumptions and indicators should be included in the index.


04:08 PM

Senator Kefalas asked Mr. Silbaugh to comment on the work being done by the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS) to create an index. Mr. Silbaugh responded that CDHS considered implementing a well-being index and decided that it was better to focus attention on the individual programs that the department already administers, and to look at well-being on an individual level, and not how a county as a whole is performing. Senator Kefalas questioned whether there is an opportunity for collaboration between the task force and CDHS in regards to developing a well-being index.

04:12 PM -- Dr. Mike Cortes, Scholar in Residence at the University of Denver, came to the table to comment on issues associated with defining an economic well-being index through public policy. He said that it is up to the individual to decide how "well off" he or she is at any given time, and asked why income and wealth become a default assumption when determining well-being. He discussed the difficulty of determining indicators for people who are dependent upon others to control their wealth and economic well-being, and stated that it's important to look at education as a proxy for economic opportunity and mobility. Senator Kefalas asked Dr. Cortes to tell the committee about a course he teaches at the University of Denver on public policy development and analysis and about the project he requires his students to complete during their course work. He responded to questions from the committee.