Butler Center publishes 2024 Columbus Economic Outlook

September 12, 2024

The Butler Center for Research & Economic Development has published its 2024 Columbus Economic Outlook. The annual report addresses key demographic, employment and labor force, economic, housing and education data for the seven-county Columbus MSA, which includes Muscogee, Chattahoochee, Harris, Talbot, Marion and Stewart counties in Georgia, and Russell County in Alabama.

The report's key topics and takeaways include:

• Population: The decade-long trend of declining Columbus population is stabilizing.
• Labor Force Participation: Labor force participation is below the national average, indicating an imbalance in labor market demand and supply, and a need to align workforce skills with the labor market needs.
• Employment & Wages: Gains in education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and professional and business services are responsible for a post-COVID-era recovery and offsetting government sector employment declines.
• Poverty & Social Issues: Households living below the poverty line, relying on food stamps and lacking medical insurance remain above state and/or national averages.
• Cost of Living & Housing: The overall cost of living and homeownership are lower than the national average. Regional healthcare costs exceed national averages.
• Education: The rate of residents who have attended some college but did not complete their degree is higher than both state and national averages.

The Butler Center, based in the university’s D. Abbott Turner College of Business & Technology, serves clients ranging from nonprofit organizations and local governments to businesses and chambers of commerce. Its director, Dr. Fady Mansour (pictured), the university’s Sarah T. Butler Distinguished University Chair of Business & Finance and an associate professor of economics, and his team collect and analyze economic data to understand local trends and shares its findings to inform local and regional decision-making. The center’s other noteworthy projects of late include the annual Columbus region tourism study for VisitColumbusGA and the economic impact study undergirding Diamond Baseball Holdings moving its Double-A Atlanta Braves affiliate team, the Columbus Clingstones, from Mississippi to Columbus.

The 2024 Columbus Economic Outlook can be downloaded from the Butler Center’s website.

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Media contacts:
Dr. Fady Mansour, Director, Butler Center for Research & Economic Development, 706.507.8596, mansour_fady@columbusstate.edu
Michael Tullier, APR, Executive Director of Strategic Communication + Marketing, 706.507.8729, mtullier@columbusstate.edu