Editorial: Gauging economic prosperity

Thursday, Dec. 9, 1999 | 9:44 a.m.

By virtually every independent barometer, Nevada's economy has experienced phenomenal progress. Last week, for instance, a Massachusetts-based research firm designated Nevada as the top state for starting and growing a small emerging business. Two more reports this week demonstrated how well Nevada has done recently and how bright the future is in the coming years. The Census Bureau announced that Nevada led the nation in housing growth from 1990 to 1998, while the trade magazine Area Development said Las Vegas tied with Phoenix for the metropolitan area believed to experience the most rapid growth in the next century. These reports aren't news to those who live here -- the booming tourism industry has allowed this state to lead the nation in population expansion this decade.

While on the business side of the ledger Nevada has done exceptionally well, this state often doesn't measure up when it comes to rankings involving health and environment, whether it's suicide, teen pregnancy rates or air quality. While economic and social factors rarely converge in these surveys, an interesting study was released recently, though, that combined both to gauge the business climate in the state. The Washington, D.C.-based Corporation for Enterprise Development gave Nevada an overall performance grade of C, down sharply from last year's A grade. The reason for the dramatic drop is that in the past the Corporation for Enterprise Development had focused solely on economic indicators -- and omitted social barometers -- when assessing a state's performance. The organization said the change was to "reflect changing economic trends to provide a mo re complete picture of each state's economy." Some of the new factors that lowered Nevada's score, as the Sun's David Strow reported Monday, included such categories as infant mortality, uninsured low-income children, teen pregnancy and heart disease.

Bob Shriver, executive director of the Nevada Commission on Economic Development, dismissed a study that considers social factors, taking particular issue with teenage pregnancies. "It's hard for me to see how that's going to be a study that dictates economic prosperity," Shriver said. Shriver makes an excellent point and, as the state's economic development director, he can't do anything to lower the teen pregnancy rate. It also can't be denied that people do vote with their feet, and the best grade of how a state is doing is whether it is drawing more people to its state. In that contest, Nevada wins hands down.

Still, the fact is that social issues and quality of life concerns do matter, and state and local elected officials for too long have put these concerns on the back-burner. This state offers an abundance of economic opportunities, but Nevada would do well to consider the Corporation for Enterprise Development's assessment. The challenge now for Nevada is to take its success to the next level, which includes improving those less tangible factors, such as quality of life issues and social conditions.