New Demographics Program Helps Government Leaders Plan for the Future
Georgia state and local governments will soon have help for informing policy decisions ranging from aging to zoning through the Applied Demography Program, a new service of the University of Georgia's Carl Vinson Institute of Government.
The program, a partnership with the state's Office of Planning and Budget, will provide a regularly updated, consistent, and objective set of population data useful for state and local government budget planning, said Warren Brown, director. "By combining local trends with forecasts of national, state, and regional changes, the Applied Demography Program will fill the gap for information between what the U.S. Census Bureau does for the nation and what Georgia cities and counties can do on their own and deliver it in an expedient manner," he explained.
"The University of Georgia and the Vinson Institute have always been committed to providing leaders with systematic, data-driven research to address public issues. We look forward to enhancing officials' ability to anticipate future scenarios and plan accordingly in today's increasingly complex government environment," said Steve Wrigley, Vinson Institute director.
For example, the Environmental Protection Division (EPD) of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources plans to incorporate the Applied Demography Program's population and employment projections into their process for developing regional water plans throughout the state.
Before joining the Vinson Institute, Brown directed Cornell University's Program on Applied Demographics, producing population estimates and projections for New York State. He has worked closely with the U.S. Census Bureau; he is a past chair of the bureau's Federal State Cooperative for Population Estimates.
