Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title/Conference

Economics Research Institute Study Paper

Volume

96

Issue

25

Publisher

Utah State University Department of Economics

Publication Date

1996

First Page

1

Last Page

18

Abstract

An examination of employment patterns in rural Utah counties suggests that those counties that primarily rely on tourism and recreation to maintain economic viability exhibit annual employment variability much greater than those counties that rely on alternative economic activity. Compared to long-run boomlbust employment cycles, which are prevalent in counties that rely on resource extraction, annual recreation, and tourism employment cycles, are at least as variable and of much shorter duration due to the seasonal nature of tourist visitation patterns. As a result, local infrastructure planning for an economy based on recreation and tourism will likely involve considerable fiscal stress unless counties are able to balance capital needs with inherent short-run employment variability. This may suggest a need for long-tenn capital finance subsidies to offset capital stress during peak employment seasons in some tourist-based rural economies. Key words: employment, recreation, rural economic development.


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