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Troubled Baltimore City-owned Hilton hotel hit hard by pandemic travel problems
FOX 45 News, October 6, 2021
COVID-19 has had significant and negative effects on most businesses and economies across the nation. The Hilton hotel on Pratt Street in Baltimore City was no exception. RESI Chief Economist Daraius Irani commented “It’s been a struggle for the hotel,” but that the hotel has been struggling for some time. According to the Baltimore Business Journal, the city-owned hotel lost $20 million during 2020 bringing their total deficit to a staggering $101 million. Irani questioned if owning the hotel would be worth it for the city and concluded that, “At the end of the day the city taxpayers are on the hook for whatever deficit it’s operating at.”
Hogan's budget surplus plan met with caution from Dem leaders: 'Devil is in the details'
FOX 45 News, October 8, 2021
The fiscal year ended with a $2.5 billion budget surplus for the State of Maryland and Governor Larry Hogan wants to invest it cautiously. Included in Hogan’s proposed spending plan is a substantial deposit to Maryland’s Rainy Day Fund, approximately $1.4 billion. Also included is a proposed tax cut for retirees residing in Maryland. RESI Chief Economist Daraius Irani believes that the tax cut would be give the State the highest return on investment and that the notion itself could encourage retirees to stay in Maryland. The proposed spending plan in its entirety will be included in Hogan’s budget proposal that will be unveiled in January.
Economist: Here's what's keeping people out of the workforce in Maryland
FOX 45 News, October 14, 2021
Maryland’s unemployment rate has improved since the peak of the pandemic but is now stagnating at around 5.9 percent despite record levels of job openings in recent data. RESI Chief Economist Daraius Irani commented that there are many factors influencing this trend including a lack of affordable childcare, fear of the Delta variant, and individuals deciding to leave the workforce entirely. In a recent month about 3.0 percent of the State’s labor force left the workforce. “That is probably the highest point it has been in the last 20 years,” Irani said.
Maryland's handling of pandemic unemployment claims inexcusable, economist says
FOX 45 News, October 14, 2021
Almost two years since the start of the pandemic and some Marylanders are still struggling to receive their unemployment claims. Earlier this month an estimated 18,551 submitted claims were still pending in the system. RESI Chief Economist Daraius Irani pointed out that "there’s a lot of money and time and effort—a lot of smart people working on it. And for having to sort of fail so spectacularly, so many times for Maryland—it feels like we’ve got a big base of IT people. We should be able to solve this pretty easily.”
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