Atlanta Household Income Drop

AJC 9/29/14 Metro truth-o-meter section reported “Claim on income decrease holds up”.  The claim made by a Jason Carter ad that in the past 10 years Georgia’s middle-class income dropped $6500 was true.  The inference is that Nathan Deal’s claims of economic progress doesn’t include everybody.  This is true enough, but the reasons for this phenomenon were beyond government’s ability to prevent.

In 1980, high tech engineering jobs were being created in Atlanta because advances in electronics made the PC revolution possible.  The surge in electronics engineering and manufacturing spilled over to Atlanta.  Minimum wage jobs were largely held by high school and college students.  The jobs being created were manufacturing, technicians and engineers.  Telecom was due for retooling at the same time and this added to the increase in higher paying jobs.  Defense electronics also surged in this period.  See Atlanta Economics posted Sunday, September 28, 2014.

The completion of this electronics boom cycle by 2004, passage of NAFTA in 1993 and the doubling of immigration started in 1989 all had their effects on Atlanta’s loss of higher paying jobs.  By 2004, most minimum wage jobs were held by immigrants, leaving students effectively unemployed.  A great many engineering and manufacturing operations were transferred out of Atlanta with much work going overseas.  In 1993, we were told that we were entering the information age.  By 2004, we knew the information wasn’t good. 

The end result was that middle class households lost their manufacturing and technician jobs and had to take lower paying jobs.  Engineers went elsewhere or changed fields.  In addition, we imported a ton of lower paid immigrants and watered down the middle class averages.  

Pretending that Atlanta’s economy has not declined is a disservice to its citizens.  Years of making pathetic claims that our economy is improving are transparently false.  Making showy mal-investments that are too expensive and underutilized and paying interest are all wasteful.  It is better to use our scarce tax revenue to maintain our roads, bridges, water and sewer systems. 

As Governor, neither Jason Carter nor Nathan Deal will be able to do very much to restore these lost wages or create a stronger economy.  Higher paying jobs will come if we can get another economic boom the size of the electronics boom. In the meantime, all we can do is reduce cost by automating all government functions, expand our water reservoirs, expand the Savannah harbor and keep energy and regulatory costs low to attract manufacturing to return.

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader