Join the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond for the third installment of District Dialogues, a forum dedicated to giving community members the opportunity to engage with experts on the biggest economic issues facing our District.

On Tuesday, August 9, we will bring together leading experts to discuss the economics of aging in America. When you attend this session, you’ll learn:

Tim Sablik: Hello, and welcome to Speaking of the Economy. I'm your host, Tim Sablik, a senior economics writer at the Richmond Fed. My guest today is Nicolas Morales. Nicolas is an economist in the Research Department here at the Richmond Fed. His research focuses on immigration, which will be the topic of our conversation today.

Nicolas, thanks for joining me.

Nicolas Morales: Thanks for having me. I'm happy to be here.

Sablik: You came on the show about a year ago to talk about some of your research on the interaction between domestic and immigrant workers. We'll put a link up to that episode for anyone who's interested. One of the key points you made in that episode is that while many people voiced concerns that immigrant workers take jobs away from natives, you and other researchers have found that that's typically not the case, right?

Morales: Yeah, that's true. There's been a lot of research on this topic by labor economists. Kind of...

Historically, bank branches have been an integral component of the retail-banking distribution model. However, given the rapid adoption of new technology in the financial services industry and changing customer preferences, many institutions are transitioning from the traditional physical branch model to more digitally focused channels. As a result of this shift, institutions are now forced to reexamine their physical presence within the communities they serve. There are many factors that need to be considered when evaluating whether to close or consolidate a branch. In addition to the economic and financial impact of closing a branch, it is vital that institutions also consider the legal and compliance risks related to Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) ratings and fair lending as part of a branch evaluation.

Institutions should evaluate the impact of closing a branch office in the communities it serves, particularly to low- and moderate-income geographies or...

Introduction

Poverty has remained persistently high in rural areas since the 1960s when these data were first officially tracked. According to estimates from the 2019 American Community Survey (ACS), the nonmetropolitan poverty rate was 15.4 percent, compared with 11.9 percent in metro areas. Rural poverty can often be attributed to poor access to employment opportunities and low educational attainment, among other factors.

Nationwide, rural communities are adopting a new approach to help families break the cycle of poverty. Often referred to as two-generation, intergenerational, multigenerational, or whole-family strategies, this holistic approach concurrently addresses the needs of entire families living together. A rural community action agency (CAA) in Garrett County, Maryland, has been at the forefront of this model — its pioneering strategy has received national acclaim and is constantly being studied, replicated, and adapted.

Garrett County...