business backgrounder | economy
Next Steps : Preparing for a Post-Pandemic Economic Recovery
Budgeting and opportunity in an economic transition .
Richard S . Davis
As the pandemic stretches into the winter , the economic damage has been profound . The state faces a substantial revenue shortfall . Many businesses will not reopen ; others are thriving . Lower-income households have been hard-hit ; work-from-home salaried workers have fared much better . Business and government programs to promote recovery have accelerated efforts in collaborative and complementary partnerships , in which AWB has played a key role .
At A Glance
The shape and timing of the recovery remains unknowable . But efforts undertaken today are laying the foundation for a more inclusive economy .
www . awbinstitute . org www . commerce . wa . gov / datadashboard
Nine-plus months after the governor ’ s “ Stay Home - Stay Healthy ” order , Washington ’ s economy remains constrained by the Covid-19 pandemic . In the first months after the pandemic swept over the globe , government , business , and public health authorities operated with partial and contradictory information — the Covid equivalent of the fog of war .
As time passed , the most dire predictions were modified . Masks , social distancing , government policies and business practices turned out to work . The public responded ( mostly ) by behaving responsibly . Federal assistance preserved household incomes . As a result , the state economy outperformed early predictions .
“ The recovery from the last recession was uneven .”
— Lisa Brown , director , Washington state Department of Commerce
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