Economic Resilience Dashboard

 Overview 

In times of crisis, the basic economic security of having a flow of resources to withstand the effects is fundamental to recovery, not only for individual families but also for community resilience. Responses to curb the health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic included measures that have shocked the Maricopa County economy.

This Economic Resilience Dashboard tracks the number of key metrics in order to monitor a systemic picture of the main impacts and cascading effects. Without system intervention, job loss and business failure provoke housing crisis, evictions, and foreclosures. Federal remedies from the CARES Act are tracked as part of the response. Data is updated as frequently as official statistics are released, which vary by indicator. We welcome suggestions for making this dashboard as useful as possible for residents, community organizations, public actors, employers, private entities, and business decision-makers.

Unemployment Rate

The Local Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program produces monthly and annual employment, unemployment, and labor force data for Census regions by place of residence. The LAUS Household survey accepts data as recorded, and takes no ad-hoc actions to classify survey responses. 

The data to the dashboard is updated monthly, as soon as it is available for the previous month. 

Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims

An unemployment insurance claim is a request for cash benefits after getting laid off from a job. An individual makes an unemployment claim to the government of the state in which they worked to receive interim payments after losing a job through no fault of their own. 

The purpose of this analysis is to identify which geographic regions and industry sectors are recording the most significant initial claim filings and changes over time. 

The data comes from the Department of Labor and is updated to the dashboard every Saturday for the previous week's initial claims. 

Industry Employment and Wages

The Current Employment Statistics (CES) program produces detailed industry estimates of non-farm employment, hours, and earnings of workers on the payroll. The CES estimates are used for this analysis to highlight the trends in non-farm employment and wages in Arizona's metropolitan statistical areas. 

The data to the dashboard is updated monthly, as soon as it is available for the previous month. 

Census Household Pulse Survey

The Household Pulse Survey is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau and aims to provide near real-time data on the social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on households. The data accuracy is very high in this self-response survey and can be used to inform federal and state responses. 

The data is released on a weekly basis and the survey will continue through Mid - July. The survey data and technical documentation can be accessed. 

The Coronavirus Relief Fund Allocations 

Through the Coronavirus Relief Fund, the CARES Act (signed into law on March 27, 2020) provides for direct payments to the state, local, and tribal governments navigation the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

This analysis brings data from the U.S. Department of The Treasury on the direct allocations made to the eligible counties and cities by the federal government, as well as data from the Office of the Arizona Governor on the distributions made by the state through the "Arizona Cares Fund."

The "Arizona Cares Fund" is for smaller and mid-sized cities, towns, and counties, that have not already received the federal aid.