This report discusses economic issues with areas of the United States Armed Forces.

This report examines the impact of transit-oriented development. Transit-oriented development (TOD) is an increasingly popular urban form. Based on a survey of residents of TOD projects in areas served by Dallas Area Rapid Transit, Fort Worth T, and Capital Metro (Austin) rail transit, moving into TOD decreases VMT by an average of 15 percent, or about 3,500 miles per year, which impacts TxDOT motor fuel tax revenues. The data also indicate that these households shift their choice of route to include more arterial roads versus highways. Differential behavior is observed among the three areas studied with the greatest impact being on the DART system and the Capital Metro system showing smaller changes in TOD resident travel behaviors. Residents of TOD choose their housing based mostly on commuting distance and lifestyle characteristics, such as proximity to dining and entertainment venues. Proximity to a transit rail station is at least moderately important for 57 percent of respondents. The report recommends that TxDOT look to incorporate TOD into facility planning and design and seek ways to extract value from TOD projects.

This report compares the film industry incentive programs of other states with the Texas incentive program and examines their respective economic and fiscal impacts. In Texas, the economic impact of the moving media industry approached $345 million in 2007. This report also identifies strategies proposed to enhance Texas' future competitive position in the moving media industry.

These appendices report on the findings of the principle investigators regarding the potential impact of the proposed Union Pacific/Southern Pacific merger on the state of Texas. This analysis was conducted by the University of North Texas Center for Economic Development and Research.

This report, by the University of North Texas Center for Economic Development and Research, summarizes the findings of the principle investigators regarding the potential impact of the proposed Union Pacific/Southern Pacific merger on the state of Texas. The findings of the component analyses are categorized as either positive, neutral or negative. This is followed by an overall characterization of the merger's impact.