WASHINGTON — New findings from the Pew Charitable Trusts say the $2.6
billion in government cutbacks had a trickle-down effect in the D.C. region,
starting with job loss.
Virginia ranked 48th in the country when it came to economic growth, Maryland
ranked 49th and D.C. would have ranked 51st had it been a state.
Stephen Fuller, with the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason
University, says the metropolitan areas recovering fastest, such as Boston and
Dallas, are doing so because of their business model.
“They have businesses that know how to do business with each other, where our
businesses only know how to do business with the federal government,” he says.
But, he says, the D.C. region’s workforce is known for its intelligence. “We
just have to be aware we need to learn new tricks,” he says. “Let’s get on with
it.”
WTOP’s Megan Cloherty contributed to this report. Follow @WTOP on Twitter and on the WTOP Facebook page.
