By Sarah Mulholland | CPR News
Colorado’s businesses are at risk of losing their competitive edge to companies in other states and it comes down to whether people can afford to live here, according to a report from the Romer Institute of Evidence-based Policy.
The reasons behind the state’s economic headwinds are multifaceted, but one thing is clear. The housing crunch is making it harder to recruit workers, the report found.
The analysis looks at Colorado’s economy relative to Arizona, North Carolina, Texas, Utah and Washington. The states were chosen because they overlap Colorado’s economy based on region or industry, and they compete for talent, investment and business location decisions, according to the Denver-based nonprofit policy group that bears the name of former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer.
Slow growth, bad vibes
Colorado’s economy has been slowing for several years following a surge in growth as the U.S. emerged from the pandemic recession. Since 2022, Colorado has had slower job growth than all its peer states and the national average, according to the report. Last year, Colorado lost jobs for the first time since 2010, excluding COVID-19 job losses.
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