State of California
The University of California, Office of the President (UCOP) was seeking a comprehensive economic study to analyze and communicate the range of economic effects that UC’s educational programs, services, and research have on the State’s economy. The need for this analysis came at a critical juncture for both UC and the State. On the one hand, the strength of California’s economy has become increasingly linked to the type of innovation, productivity, and diversity that the UC system has helped to advance over its long history. On the other hand, the ongoing budget crisis in California has affected all of the State’s programs and services, including particularly onerous cuts to UC even as student enrollment demands have increased.
In Phase I of this study, the UCOP retained EPS to quantify the UC’s “primary” economic impacts generated by its education, research, and medical functions. EPS utilized an input/output (I/O) modeling framework to quantify UC’s contribution to State and regional output, jobs, and employee compensation. These economic impacts were disaggregated into 14 separate regions within the State and assigned to one of UC’s ten campuses or five medical centers. The analysis utilized primary data from UCOP related to salaries and wages, capital investments, payments to retirees, and other expenditures.