JOBS: Spending money where it’s needed least

Michael Bell

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Council Member Andrew Friedson, the closest thing we have to a moderate and reformer on the County Council, recently introduced his JOBS (Jobs, Opportunities and Business Support) initiative. According to the press release, there are three components to JOBS:

  • $10 million for job creation, offering $10,000 per employee paid $100,000 or more ($12,000 if in an equity focus area).
  • $7 million for innovation (prototypes and pilot projects).
  • $3 million for grants to early- and growth-stage small businesses whose owners live in the equity focus area.

First and foremost, the qualitative analysis: should our county government be spending this kind of money to subsidize six-figure salaries? To what extent are we obligated to subsidize a middle-class lifestyle? Instead, the $20 million could be spent elsewhere, ideally as budget reductions or, as Mr. Friedson so chillingly put it, rescuing “our most vulnerable residents on the side of the road” due to cuts in state-government transportation subventions.

If ethics doesn’t provide a convincing argument for you (it rarely does for anyone these days), then how about data analysis.

Low unemployment The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that from February 2023 to March 2024, Montgomery County had an unemployment rate between 1.6% to 2.6%, significantly lower than the nation as a whole, and a whole lot better than growth regions such as Dallas, TX.

The complement of unemployment is labor force, which for MoCo has been moving between 543,000 to 558,000.

There are plenty of jobs in this region to support the county’s population, arguably thanks to voracious hiring by the federal government and its contractors. (There is much for which we must be thankful.) We don’t need the county to pay for more white-collar jobs.

High local labor cost Suppose an employer is considering setting up shop in our area, and it manages to qualify for the $10,000 subsidy per employee. Even with that subsidy, how does MoCo compare to other areas?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes salary estimates of various job titles in various metropolitan areas. At the end of this post is the gory detail comparing salaries between the DMV and Dallas as of May 2023. Even accounting for the $10,000/year subvention, employers pay less in Dallas than in DMV for the similar skill in 82% of the job titles. The $10,000 subsidy won’t help much to encourage employers to come here.

High local living costs The site salary.com provides cost-of-living comparisons between various metropolitan areas, including Dallas and Bethesda. In the annotated screen shot below, it looks like salaries are 11% less in Dallas, yet the cost of living is 26% less. That translates into a net gain for the employee. Again, throwing $10,000 at an employee won’t necessarily change that employee’s conclusion.

Conclusions:

  • The JOBS act subsidizes middle- or upper-income salaries.
  • The subsidy does not compensate for the already distorted salaries in the DMV area.
  • The subsidy does not address those employees moving out of the area to take a pay cut in return for an even lower cost of living.
  • The $20 million this program is costing us would be better spent on law enforcement or helping the truly needy.

(However, if CM Friedson can cut the MCPS’s monstrous operating budget by 5% ($167 million), his JOBS initiative is worth every penny.)

Comparison of annual salaries, DMV area and Dallas, from May 2023 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates.

Description DMV DMV-10K Dallas DMV Greater
Management Occupations 163,900 153,900 137,110 TRUE
Chief Executives 323,200 313,200 335,780 FALSE
General and Operations Managers 157,520 147,520 133,350 TRUE
Advertising and Promotions Managers 138,390 128,390 120,930 TRUE
Marketing Managers 180,340 170,340 153,230 TRUE
Sales Managers 163,950 153,950 147,670 TRUE
Public Relations Managers 216,930 206,930 131,100 TRUE
Fundraising Managers 151,060 141,060 108,730 TRUE
Administrative Services Managers 142,610 132,610 136,250 FALSE
Facilities Managers 115,960 105,960 115,020 FALSE
Computer and Information Systems Managers 196,320 186,320 175,830 TRUE
Financial Managers 191,040 181,040 174,770 TRUE
Industrial Production Managers 144,120 134,120 126,990 TRUE
Purchasing Managers 163,570 153,570 143,430 TRUE
Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers 130,640 120,640 110,450 TRUE
Compensation and Benefits Managers 164,520 154,520 132,250 TRUE
Human Resources Managers 177,330 167,330 150,800 TRUE
Training and Development Managers 154,090 144,090 133,360 TRUE
Construction Managers 132,370 122,370 108,160 TRUE
Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary 129,610 119,610 98,960 TRUE
Education Administrators, Postsecondary 143,410 133,410 120,900 TRUE
Education Administrators, All Other 122,160 112,160 95,590 TRUE
Architectural and Engineering Managers 175,290 165,290 192,370 FALSE
Gambling Managers 104,280 94,280 66,920 TRUE
Medical and Health Services Managers 153,240 143,240 131,370 TRUE
Natural Sciences Managers 166,780 156,780 132,030 TRUE
Social and Community Service Managers 106,860 96,860 83,890 TRUE
Emergency Management Directors 142,270 132,270 105,540 TRUE
Funeral Home Managers 110,000 100,000 67,510 TRUE
Managers, All Other 161,300 151,300 148,320 TRUE
Business and Financial Operations Occupations 116,970 106,970 87,310 TRUE
Buyers and Purchasing Agents 102,490 92,490 79,230 TRUE
Labor Relations Specialists 116,250 106,250 87,170 TRUE
Logisticians 105,570 95,570 78,680 TRUE
Project Management Specialists 123,330 113,330 99,690 TRUE
Management Analysts 167,190 157,190 115,210 TRUE
Business Operations Specialists, All Other 107,290 97,290 89,480 TRUE
Accountants and Auditors 104,850 94,850 90,130 TRUE
Budget Analysts 115,560 105,560 82,300 TRUE
Credit Analysts 110,120 100,120 87,140 TRUE
Financial and Investment Analysts 118,140 108,140 102,190 TRUE
Personal Financial Advisors 161,110 151,110 123,840 TRUE
Financial Risk Specialists 126,340 116,340 103,630 TRUE
Financial Examiners 138,300 128,300 85,690 TRUE
Loan Officers 114,180 104,180 81,120 TRUE
Financial Specialists, All Other 115,110 105,110 80,360 TRUE
Computer and Mathematical Occupations 130,950 120,950 111,010 TRUE
Computer Systems Analysts 126,110 116,110 122,400 FALSE
Information Security Analysts 142,150 132,150 124,630 TRUE
Computer and Information Research Scientists 156,840 146,840 147,630 FALSE
Computer Network Architects 152,110 142,110 134,410 TRUE
Database Administrators 118,390 108,390 110,760 FALSE
Database Architects 153,520 143,520 143,670 FALSE
Network and Computer Systems Administrators 119,200 109,200 99,690 TRUE
Computer Programmers 113,020 103,020 104,650 FALSE
Software Developers 148,480 138,480 128,100 TRUE
Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers 120,740 110,740 106,720 TRUE
Web Developers 118,080 108,080 101,000 TRUE
Computer Occupations, All Other 134,300 124,300 110,160 TRUE
Actuaries 142,370 132,370 120,800 TRUE
Mathematicians 149,540 139,540 120,800 TRUE
Operations Research Analysts 125,880 115,880 103,500 TRUE
Statisticians 128,220 118,220 104,520 TRUE
Data Scientists 139,080 129,080 116,320 TRUE
Architecture and Engineering Occupations 118,790 108,790 96,740 TRUE
Architects, Except Landscape and Naval 112,390 102,390 94,970 TRUE
Aerospace Engineers 151,090 141,090 131,800 TRUE
Agricultural Engineers 151,090 141,090 131,800 TRUE
Bioengineers and Biomedical Engineers 111,790 101,790 91,510 TRUE
Chemical Engineers 122,740 112,740 -8 TRUE
Civil Engineers 102,580 92,580 99,110 FALSE
Computer Hardware Engineers 154,060 144,060 118,190 TRUE
Electrical Engineers 132,710 122,710 103,430 TRUE
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer 138,870 128,870 126,760 TRUE
Environmental Engineers 126,350 116,350 120,420 FALSE
Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors 122,350 112,350 119,880 FALSE
Industrial Engineers 115,430 105,430 108,890 FALSE
Marine Engineers and Naval Architects 143,160 133,160 108,890 TRUE
Materials Engineers 139,190 129,190 123,590 TRUE
Mechanical Engineers 124,450 114,450 103,950 TRUE
Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers 124,450 114,450 108,930 TRUE
Nuclear Engineers 152,060 142,060 116,160 TRUE
Petroleum Engineers 126,240 116,240 165,200 FALSE
Engineers, All Other 143,910 133,910 113,040 TRUE
Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations 118,440 108,440 77,700 TRUE
Food Scientists and Technologists 104,710 94,710 96,420 FALSE
Biochemists and Biophysicists 120,930 110,930 95,830 TRUE
Microbiologists 115,460 105,460 66,000 TRUE
Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists 112,270 102,270 43,140 TRUE
Biological Scientists, All Other 109,360 99,360 78,640 TRUE
Epidemiologists 121,750 111,750 92,600 TRUE
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists 122,340 112,340 -8 TRUE
Life Scientists, All Other 129,650 119,650 85,550 TRUE
Astronomers 145,520 135,520 85,550 TRUE
Physicists 144,480 134,480 173,110 FALSE
Atmospheric and Space Scientists 127,170 117,170 98,050 TRUE
Chemists 138,060 128,060 92,160 TRUE
Materials Scientists 108,470 98,470 93,120 TRUE
Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health 108,970 98,970 92,860 TRUE
Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers 116,980 106,980 134,170 FALSE
Hydrologists 145,240 135,240 97,700 TRUE
Physical Scientists, All Other 149,160 139,160 145,290 FALSE
Economists 157,910 147,910 133,410 TRUE
Survey Researchers 101,620 91,620 33,800 TRUE
Clinical and Counseling Psychologists 126,400 116,400 76,160 TRUE
School Psychologists 100,260 90,260 83,670 TRUE
Psychologists, All Other 113,330 103,330 126,210 FALSE
Urban and Regional Planners 102,070 92,070 80,090 TRUE
Geographers 108,250 98,250 61,160 TRUE
Historians 119,660 109,660 61,160 TRUE
Political Scientists 147,720 137,720 61,160 TRUE
Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other 133,730 123,730 94,480 TRUE
Health Education Specialists 112,580 102,580 65,420 TRUE
Legal Occupations 187,610 177,610 136,310 TRUE
Lawyers 223,890 213,890 188,350 TRUE
Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers 146,730 136,730 140,440 FALSE
Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates 157,300 147,300 170,470 FALSE
Legal Support Workers, All Other 125,190 115,190 77,350 TRUE
Business Teachers, Postsecondary 123,230 113,230 116,360 FALSE
Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary 107,430 97,430 100,580 FALSE
Architecture Teachers, Postsecondary 102,140 92,140 91,970 TRUE
Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary 130,650 120,650 130,130 FALSE
Agricultural Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary 120,530 110,530 105,570 TRUE
Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary 106,550 96,550 87,210 TRUE
Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary 106,550 96,550 87,210 TRUE
Atmospheric, Earth, Marine, and Space Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary 130,170 120,170 94,810 TRUE
Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary 107,100 97,100 94,120 TRUE
Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary 100,890 90,890 105,910 FALSE
Physics Teachers, Postsecondary 116,600 106,600 102,570 TRUE
Anthropology and Archeology Teachers, Postsecondary 110,490 100,490 95,060 TRUE
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary 106,920 96,920 94,340 TRUE
Economics Teachers, Postsecondary 149,430 139,430 110,830 TRUE
Geography Teachers, Postsecondary 117,260 107,260 92,950 TRUE
Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary 100,720 90,720 97,580 FALSE
Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary 100,250 90,250 87,450 TRUE
Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary 143,310 133,310 196,150 FALSE
Law Teachers, Postsecondary 127,350 117,350 143,900 FALSE
Art Directors 130,400 120,400 87,880 TRUE
Artists and Related Workers, All Other 111,850 101,850 45,100 TRUE
Athletes and Sports Competitors 279,440 269,440 79,090 TRUE
News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists 126,420 116,420 70,110 TRUE
Public Relations Specialists 108,730 98,730 69,510 TRUE
Writers and Authors 102,790 92,790 82,350 TRUE
Media and Communication Equipment Workers, All Other 105,460 95,460 73,910 TRUE
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations 116,050 106,050 98,210 TRUE
Dentists, General 253,300 243,300 227,260 TRUE
Dentists, All Other Specialists 194,400 184,400 227,260 FALSE
Optometrists 175,700 165,700 193,590 FALSE
Pharmacists 142,490 132,490 136,230 FALSE
Physician Assistants 121,470 111,470 137,790 FALSE
Podiatrists 214,970 204,970 216,830 FALSE
Occupational Therapists 108,150 98,150 103,830 FALSE
Physical Therapists 108,880 98,880 109,560 FALSE
Radiation Therapists 101,750 91,750 110,470 FALSE
Speech-Language Pathologists 104,320 94,320 91,000 TRUE
Nurse Anesthetists 255,140 245,140 220,050 TRUE
Nurse Midwives 126,110 116,110 110,920 TRUE
Nurse Practitioners 128,030 118,030 129,180 FALSE
Audiologists 102,820 92,820 97,210 FALSE
Anesthesiologists 347,870 337,870 192,300 TRUE
Cardiologists 442,390 432,390 310,500 TRUE
General Internal Medicine Physicians 210,980 200,980 242,220 FALSE
Neurologists 210,980 200,980 267,000 FALSE
Obstetricians and Gynecologists 270,150 260,150 326,280 FALSE
Pediatricians, General 200,080 190,080 187,530 TRUE
Physicians, Pathologists 211,950 201,950 307,810 FALSE
Psychiatrists 231,390 221,390 233,000 FALSE
Radiologists 243,180 233,180 342,880 FALSE
Physicians, All Other 215,160 205,160 188,550 TRUE
Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric 279,950 269,950 394,650 FALSE
Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric 378,310 368,310 394,650 FALSE
Pediatric Surgeons 378,310 368,310 394,650 FALSE
Surgeons, All Other 343,110 333,110 394,650 FALSE
Dental Hygienists 105,680 95,680 89,570 TRUE
Healthcare Diagnosing or Treating Practitioners, All Other 150,740 140,740 153,380 FALSE
Medical Dosimetrists 149,120 139,120 146,050 FALSE
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives 122,840 112,840 115,050 FALSE
First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers 106,800 96,800 95,040 TRUE
Detectives and Criminal Investigators 134,080 124,080 95,160 TRUE
Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance 115,320 105,320 38,220 TRUE
First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers 121,260 111,260 85,130 TRUE
Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents 106,620 96,620 108,380 FALSE
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products 124,230 114,230 101,400 TRUE
Sales Engineers 153,630 143,630 128,830 TRUE
Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers 102,030 92,030 86,530 TRUE
Power Distributors and Dispatchers 101,050 91,050 94,040 FALSE
Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers 259,790 249,790 241,930 TRUE
Commercial Pilots 152,860 142,860 203,560 FALSE
Air Traffic Controllers 140,850 130,850 164,780 FALSE

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Breaking Up MCPS MoCo’s housing isn’t dirt cheap, but it’s close (Part 2) Follow the science? Not in Jawando’s push for rent-control. (Part 1)

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