BEA's economic modeling tool that helps users analyze how a proposed project would ripple through a region's economy is now updated with new benchmark data.
State and local governments, civic leaders, planners, investors, and others use the tool to assess the economic impact of projects or events within their selected area. For example, building an apartment complex would require buying building materials from local retailers and wholesalers, leasing equipment, and hiring tradespeople. Employees of these and other local businesses would have additional wages to spend, perhaps on household needs or recreation.
The Regional Input-Output Modeling System, or RIMS II, uses two main types of Bureau of Economic Analysis data. Updates to both have been incorporated into the model:
- The national benchmark supply-use tables (also known as the input-output tables), new 2017 data.
- Regional wages and employment, new 2022 data.
National benchmark supply-use tables are released every five years and based on the Census Bureau's Economic Census data, the official five-year measure of businesses in the United States. The benchmark supply-use tables are the most detailed accounting of industry relationships produced by BEA. These tables show the goods and services produced and consumed by hundreds of industries, as well as households, and provide a comprehensive picture of business relationships in the U.S. economy.
The new supply-use tables inform the RIMS II model of shifts in purchasing patterns. For example, bakeries would shift more of their spending to paying for labor, fruit, and pie tins if U.S. consumers changed to purchasing more pies and less bread.
New regional wage and employment data let the RIMS II model measure the ability of the selected region to provide raw materials, goods, and services identified in the supply-use tables. In the case of our bakery, the regional data provide the local wage rates for labor and indicate whether the local economy can provide extra fruit and pie tins or if increased spending on those items goes to manufacturers outside the region.
The RIMS II model is customized for each user's needs. Multipliers may be purchased by region or industry. A region may consist of one or more contiguous counties or states.
For more information, visit the RIMS II webpage or contact the RIMS II staff.