Week in Review: Dec. 15, 2024

FY24-25 BUDGET

The Office of Budget and Management (OBM) reported Friday that preliminary estimates of November's revenues show them coming in nearly 3 percent below estimates. Specifically, the state was nearly $76.9 million or 2.9 percent below estimates for the month. The state, however, continues to run ahead of estimates for FY25 by nearly a half billion dollars -- $493.6 million or 4.4 percent over estimates. The total revenue for November 2024 was $2.612 billion as opposed to the projected income of $2.689 billion. However, this is still $76.3 million more than was collected in November 2023, which saw the state pull in $2.536 billion.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT/URBAN REVITALIZATION

The DeWine administration recently announced the awarding of over $56 million as part of the Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program, with 37 projects set to receive funding in the latest round. That money is expected to leverage around $715 million in private investments, according to the administration.

ECONOMY

Beth Hammack, president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, discussed the country's economic outlook and the Federal Reserve's policy efforts to aid disinflation during a City Club of Cleveland forum on Friday afternoon. Before diving into her outlook on the economy, Hammack said that the country is now largely beyond the extreme market fluctuations brought by the coronavirus pandemic, but that some issues are still lingering.

EMPLOYMENT/UNEMPLOYMENT

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday the nation added 227,000 jobs in November, while the unemployment rate changed little at 4.2 percent. Employment increased in health care, leisure and hospitality, government, and social assistance while retail jobs fell during the month.