Table of Contents Executive Summary .................................................................................................... 3 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 9 Definition of the Forest Industry in Georgia ............................................................. 10 Economic Benefits .................................................................................................... 17 Economic Impact of Urban and Community Forestry .............................................. 25 Economic Impact by Regional Commission .............................................................. 26 References ................................................................................................................ 29 Appendix ................................................................................................................... 30 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 2 Executive Summary Georgia's forest industry has many components, which interact with all other sectors of the economy in complex ways. The purposes of this analysis are to: (1) quantify the level of economic activity conducted by the components of the forest industry, (2) estimate economic activity supported in all Georgia sectors by the industry's activities, (3) compare the level of activity in the forest industry with other industries, and (4) quantify the economic activity of forest industry sectors within each of the 12 regional commissions in Georgia. This report is the latest in a series that began in 2002, but underwent a significant restructuring in 2003 to reflect the change in industry classification systems from Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) to North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) used by data collection agencies (primarily the Georgia Department of Labor) that provide much of the data used in these analyses. Also, some minor adjustments were made in the 2011 NAICS list to reflect the changes in the new 2012 NAICS code definitions. The forest industry components, and the level of economic activity represented by them in 2018, are shown in Table E-1. Economic activity is measured by output (similar to sales revenue), employment, and compensation (defined as wages and salaries including benefits). These measures are traditionally used in this type of analysis. Table E-1 shows that 55,089 workers were employed in all sectors of the forest industry in 2018. These jobs were paid an annual compensation1 of more than $4 billion, and generated an estimated total revenue of $21.5 billion. Table E-1: Georgia Forest Industry Economic Activity (2018) Sector Forest Management and Logging Bioenergy Lumber and Wood Preservation Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Pulp and Paper Products Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving Total Output $503.6 M $589.8 M $1,779.3 M $1,769.8 M $605.2 M $13,109.9 M $109.7 M $2,054.4 M $966.1 M $21,487.8 M Employment Wages & Salaries 5,609 880 5,806 4,687 2,594 19,572 436 $332.2 M $101.9 M $395.6 M $427.7 M $122.5 M $1,775.7 M $28.3 M 10,585 $551.7 M 4,920 $281.9 M 55,089 $4,017.5 M 1 Wages and salaries including benefits Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 3 The industry's activities bring dollars into the state, which recirculate in a process called the "multiplier effect." The recirculation touches all major industry sectors as goods and services are bought and sold to meet increased demands by businesses and households resulting from the new resources brought into the state by the forest industry. The result of the multiplier effect, given by total impacts (which includes the economic activity in Table E-12), is also measured by output, employment, and wages and salaries and is shown in Table E-2. Total economic activity supported by the forest industry in Georgia (including the multiplier effect and forestry-related bioenergy firms) was $36.3 billion in 2018. These activities supported the employment of 148,414 people who earned $9.1 billion in wages and salaries (including benefits). Table E-2: Total Benefits by Major Industry (2018) Sector Agriculture, Forestry, Fish & Hunting Mining Utilities Construction Manufacturing Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Transportation & Warehousing Information Finance & Insurance Real Estate & Rental Professional, Scientific & Tech Services Management of Companies Administrative & Waste Services Educational Services Health & Social Services Arts, Entertainment & Recreation Accommodation & Food Services Other Services Government & non-NAICS Industries TOTAL Output $896.9 M $41.6 M $1,526.4 M $294.3 M $21,249.4 M $1,860.0 M $744.8 M $1,237.9 M $850.1 M $1,302.5 M $1,617.9 M $1,097.6 M $751.2 M $686.9 M $113.7 M $873.1 M $129.2 M $515.6 M $443.5 M $29.7 M $36,262.4 M Employment 9,906 231 1,859 1,810 50,737 7,675 8,553 8,104 1,656 4,821 3,914 8,343 3,040 10,569 1,802 8,253 1,946 8,515 6,486 195 148,414 Wages & Salaries $553.2 M $13.3 M $232.7 M $103.0 M $3,731.9 M $662.8 M $273.9 M $497.4 M $228.4 M $351.4 M $108.6 M $627.1 M $377.7 M $341.6 M $71.3 M $480.5 M $40.1 M $180.4 M $213.2 M $16.5 M $9,105.1 M Another way to examine the forest industry in Georgia is to compare it with the state's other manufacturing sectors. Table E-3 lists 2018 employment and income totals for each major manufacturing sector sorted by employment. These data show that the forest industry ranked second in total employment and in wages and salaries. Food processing ranked first in both employment and in wages and salaries, and transportation equipment ranked third in employment and in wages and salaries. 2 The economic activity in Table E-1 contains more than just the direct impacts because some of the inter-industry purchasing (indirect impacts) is necessarily contained in the estimates of economic activity. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 4 Table E-3: Comparison to Georgia's Other Manufacturing Sectors (2018) Industry Sectors Food Processing Forest Industry Transportation Equipment Textiles Fabricated Metal Products Machinery Chemicals Electrical Equipment and Appliances Printing Computers and Electronic Products Apparel Employment 68,035 55,089 54,687 51,203 39,377 21,898 21,783 13,890 13,055 5,996 2,446 Wages & Salaries $4,037.6 M $4,017.5 M $3,826.2 M $2,314.1 M $2,120.4 M $1,598.2 M $1,338.7 M $1,017.5 M $625.5 M $625.3 M $96.2 M Of particular importance to Georgia's state government is how the forest industry affects its annual budget. This is investigated by estimating the revenues associated with the forest industry's total economic activity and subtracting the costs associated with providing state services to Georgia's households and companies associated with that activity. Revenues include individual and corporate income taxes; sales and use taxes; highway taxes; fees; and miscellaneous revenues. Costs include education; public health, safety, and welfare; highways; administration; and miscellaneous. Table E-4 provides the fiscal impact estimates based on total impacts. The forest industry generated an estimated $977.6 million in revenues for the state budget in 2018. When the costs of providing services to all employees are deducted from these revenues, net annual state revenues were $109.8 million in year 2018. Table E-4: Fiscal Impact Analysis (2018)3 Annual State Government Revenues Annual State Government Costs Net Annual Revenues $977.6 M $867.8 M $109.8 M Table E-5 compares the overall results obtained in each impact analysis conducted from 2008 through 2018. Compared to 2017, the industry's 2018 direct output grew by 0.7 percent, employment grew by 2.1 percent, and wages and salaries increased by 4.7 percent. The industry's increased activity resulted in high net revenues for the state government. 3 The Georgia Fiscal Impact Model was originally developed in the 1990s by economists at Georgia Tech. Over the years, the econometric equations in the model have undergone revisions based on the State of Georgia's revenue and expenditure data. One such revision was recently completed. Every equation in the model was re-specified and statistically validated. One result of the new model equations is that expenditures in the model tend to be higher than previous model estimates. Many of the reduced form equations in the model are now driven by either the absolute level of the population, or the growth rate of the population. State expenditures are driven by growth in the state's population. As Georgia attracts jobs, it also attracts people and that drives state expenditures. As a result, comparisons between results from previous versions of the Georgia Fiscal Impact Model may show very different net fiscal impact results for similar sized projects. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 5 Output* Employment Wages & Salaries* Output Employment Wages & Salaries 2008 $18,270 57,812 $3,131 2009 $16,906 48,519 $2,770 -7.5% -16.1% -11.5% Table E-5: Comparison of Results 2008 to 2018 (Dollars in millions; Employment in persons) Forest Industry Direct Economic Impact 2010 2011 2012 2013 $14,495 $15,082 $16,072 $16,564 43,425 46,378 47,123 48,139 $2,624 $2,972 $2,917 $2,938 Year to Year Percent Change -14.3% 4.0% 6.6% 3.1% -10.5% 6.8% 1.6% 2.2% -5.3% 13.3% -1.9% 0.7% 2014 $16,843 48,740 $3,030 1.7% 1.2% 3.1% 2015 $19,203 50,385 $3,553 2016 $20,794 51,900 $3,741 2017 $21,348 53,933 $3,836 2018 $21,488 55,089 $4,018 14.0% 3.4% 17.3% 8.3% 2.7% 0.7% 3.0% 3.9% 2.1% 5.3% 2.5% 4.7% Output* Employment Wages & Salaries* Output Employment Wages & Salaries 2008 $28,723 128,388 $6,514 2009 $27,200 118,423 $5,561 -5.3% -7.8% -14.6% 2010 $23,643 108,112 $5,377 Total Impacts 2011 2012 $24,975 $27,469 118,459 120,260 $6,491 $6,540 2013 $28,014 127,750 $6,898 2014 $28,674 129,329 $7,119 Year to Year Percent Change -13.1% 5.6% 10.0% 2.0% 2.4% -8.7% 9.6% 1.5% 6.2% 1.2% -3.3% 20.7% 0.8% 5.5% 3.2% 2015 $32,154 133,256 $7,860 12.1% 3.0% 10.4% 2016 $35,237 144,537 $8,529 2017 $35,923 147,380 $8,709 2018 $36,262 148,414 $9,105 9.6% 1.9% 0.9% 8.5% 2.0% 0.7% 8.5% 2.1% 4.5% Forest Industry Fiscal Impact 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 State Revenues $539 $472 $448 $487 $691 $700 $721 State Costs $333 $314 $282 $308 $358 $360 $370 Net Revenues* $206 $158 $166 $179 $333 $340 $351 Source: Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2) impact assessments and Georgia Department of Labor, Current Employment and Wages *Output, Wages and Salaries and Revenues are not adjusted for inflation 2015 $753 $393 $360 2016 $778 $433 $345 2017 $970 $873 $97 2018 $977 $867 $109 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 6 Impact by Region Quantifying the economic benefits of the forest industry at the local level is difficult given the limitations in employment and wages and salaries data (non-disclosed data). In previous reports, the approach was to group counties with no disclosed data and report aggregate employment, and compensation. In 2011, a new section was added to the report quantifying the impact of the forest industry in 12 jurisdictions consistent with the state's regional commissions. Figure E-1 shows the map of the 12 regions and counties located within each region. Figure E-1: Map of Regional Commissions Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 7 Table E-6 shows the impact of the forest industry in terms of output, employment, and compensation in each region. Table E-6: Forest Industry's Regional Impact (2018) Regions Atlanta Regional Commission Central Savannah River Area Coastal Georgia Mountains Heart of Georgia Altamaha Middle Georgia Northeast Georgia Northwest Georgia River Valley Southern Georgia Southwest Georgia Three Rivers Total Output $5,724.4 M $1,538.5 M $2,318.7 M $796.8 M $1,796.6 M $1,324.0 M $1,218.6 M $1,462.2 M $742.8 M $1,741.7 M $1,610.1 M $1,213.2 M $21,487.8 M Employment 12,704 3,670 4,770 2,691 4,760 3,493 3,186 3,949 1,973 5,633 4,604 3,654 55,089 Wages & Salaries $1,070.3 M $287.7 M $433.5 M $149.0 M $335.9 M $247.5 M $227.8 M $273.4 M $138.9 M $325.6 M $301.0 M $226.8 M $4,017.5 M Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 8 SECTION 1 Introduction Georgia's forest industry contains many components and supports a significant proportion of the state's economic activity. This analysis quantifies that activity in terms of economic output, employment, and employee compensation. Economic output is defined as business revenues, and employee compensation is defined as wages and salaries including benefits paid by employers. Additional factors considered include how the manufacturing components in the forest industry compare to other manufacturing sectors, and how the forest industry affects state government costs and revenues. The first step in this process was to define the limits of what constitutes the "forest industry." This was not a simple task because the borders of one industry overlap those of other industries. How this was done and its results appear in Section 2, which also contains estimates of how much economic activity is occurring in each component of the forest industry. After the industry was defined and activities quantified, the total economic activity supported by the forest industry was estimated. Total activity is generally referred to as the "multiplier effect." This effect occurs whenever dollars are brought into the state's economy and recirculated before leaking out. Section 3 explains the methodology used to estimate total economic activity and provides perspective on how important these activities are in the overall Georgia economy. Section 4 quantifies the economic impact of urban and community forestry, a sector that was added beginning with the 2016 report. Section 5 shows the forest industry's output, employment, and compensation in the state's 12 regional commissions. This report is the latest of a series of reports that began with an analysis of the 2002 impacts, continuing annually to the present analysis. The 2002 analysis is not comparable to the subsequent analyses, however, because of a significant change in the industry classification systems implemented in the 2003 data set. The 2002 analysis was based on the Standard Industry Classification system (SIC), and the later data sets used the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS). Industry classification changes introduced by the NAICS 2012 code required minor adjustments in the NAICS code selection in the 2011 analysis. The new classification was also used in this year's analysis. The 2014 report includes revisions of 2012 and 2013 historical data, which were made as a result of a more objective and efficient methodology of retrieving data from the ES202 database provided by the Georgia Department of Labor. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 9 SECTION 2 Definition of the Forest Industry in Georgia The forest industry in Georgia has many diverse components. A general definition would include all service and manufacturing activity related to the growth, harvesting, and use of forest materials that would not exist in Georgia without the presence of extensive forests or forest industries. For example, the papermaking industry would be a part of the forest industry definition, but retail sales of that paper would not. States without commercial forests still sell paper within their borders. The forest industry definition used in this analysis includes these broad sectors: forest management, logging, wood products (such as dimension lumber), paper products, manufactured housing, furniture, other miscellaneous wood products, and woodworking and papermaking machinery. The 2012 North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) was used to define the components of the forest industry. The NAICS codes and descriptions comprising the detailed definition appear in Table 2-1. Grouping Forest Management and Logging Table 2-1: Forest Industry Definition Components: NAICS Industry Description Timber Tract Operations Forest Nursery and Gathering Forest Products Logging Support Activities for Forestry Bioenergy Bioenergy Derived from Forest Products Lumber and Wood Preservation Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted and Engineered Wood Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Pulp and Paper Products Sawmills Wood Preservation Hardwood Veneer and Plywood Manufacturing Softwood Veneer and Plywood Manufacturing Engineered Wood Member Manufacturing Truss Manufacturing Reconstituted Wood Product Manufacturing Manufactured Home, Mobile Home, Manufacturing Prefabricated Wood Building Manufacturing Pulp Mills Paper, Except Newsprint, Mills Newsprint Mills Paperboard Mills Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing Other Paperboard Container Manufacturing Paper Bag and Coated and Treated Paper Manufacturing NAICS CODE 113110 113210 113310 115310 221112 221117 321113 321999 321113 321114 321211 321212 321213 321214 321219 321991 321992 322110 322121 322122 322130 322211 322212 322219 322220 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 10 Stationery Product Manufacturing Sanitary Paper Product Manufacturing 322230 322291 All Other Converted Paper Product Manufacturing 322299 Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Sawmill, Woodworking, and Paper Machinery Manufacturing 333243 Wood Kitchen Cabinet and Countertop Manufacturing 337110 Upholstered Household Furniture Manufacturing 337121 Non-upholstered Wood Household Furniture Manufacturing 337122 Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Institutional Furniture Manufacturing Wood Office Furniture Manufacturing Custom Architectural Woodwork and Millwork Wood Window and Door Manufacturing Cut Stock, Re-sawing Lumber, and Planing 337127 337211 337212 321911 321912 Other Millwork, Including Flooring 321918 Burial Casket Manufacturing 339995 All Other Miscellaneous Wood Product Manufacturing 321999 Containers, Showcases, Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing 321920 Partitions and Shelving Showcases, Partitions, Shelving, and Lockers 337215 Source: North American Industrial Classification System; Georgia Tech's Enterprise Innovation Institute As in previous years, this analysis includes all firms producing products related to bioenergy that are derived from forest products. This relatively new industry sector is represented by 16 firms in Georgia. The total employment for this sector in 2018 was 880. The level of economic activity in each forest industry component is measured by output, employment, and wages and salaries. Measures for 2018 appear in Table 2-2, which aggregates the numerous categories from Table 2-1 to nine larger groups4. This table shows that total employment in all of the forest industry sectors was 55,089 and these jobs earned annual compensation (total wages and salaries including benefits) of $4 billion from estimated total revenue of $21.5 billion. Within the industry, Georgia companies have representatives in each of the sectors and subsectors down to the NAICS six-digit level. Based on this aggregation scheme, the highest employment is seen in pulp and paper with 19,572 workers, followed by wooden furniture, cabinets, custom arch. & millwork, windows and doors with 10,585 employees and lumber and wood preservation with 5,806 employees. Compensation, like employment, is dominated by pulp and paper at $1.8 billion (nearly half the total), followed distantly by wooden furniture, cabinets, custom archwork & millwork at $551.7 million and veneer, plywood, reconstituted and engineered wood at $427.7 million. The largest outputs are produced by pulp and paper ($13.1 billion), followed by wooden furniture, 4 There were two changes to the breakdown of categories that were introduced in the 2012 report: bioenergy is shown as a separate sector and windows and doors sector is combined with wooden furniture, cabinets, custom archwork & millwork, windows and doors. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 11 cabinets, custom archwork & millwork, windows and doors ($2 billion) and lumber and wood preservation ($1.8 billion). Table 2-2: Georgia Forest Industry Economic Activity (2018) Sector Output Employment Forest Management and Logging Bioenergy Lumber and Wood Preservation Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Pulp and Paper Products Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving $503.6 M $589.8 M $1,779.3 M $1,769.8 M $605.2 M $13,109.9 M $109.7 M $2,054.4 M $966.1 M 5,609 880 5,806 4,687 2,594 19,572 436 10,585 4,920 Wages & Salaries $332.2 M $101.9 M $395.6 M $427.7 M $122.5 M $1,775.7 M $28.3 M $551.7 M $281.9 M Total $21,487.8 M 55,089 $4,017.5 M Table 2-3 provides a comparison of the forest industry activity from 2009 through 2018. Three measures are included in the comparison: output, employment, and compensation. Output (an estimate of the firms' revenues) continued to grow from 2017 to 2018, however at a much slower pace, increasing by 0.7 percent. Prefabricated wood buildings and manufactured housing sector showed the highest growth increasing by 40 percent. Bioenergy reported the highest level of a decline - 32.1 percent. Employment also showed growth in 2018 with the state's forest industry reporting an increase of 1,156 jobs, or 2.1 percent from 2017. The majority of the jobs were in the pulp and paper products sector. Prefabricated wood buildings and manufactured housing and veneer, plywood, reconstituted, and engineered wood sectors saw the highest percentage growth at 21.3 percent and 13.5 percent, respectively. Wages and salaries increased in all but two sectors. The bioenergy sector reported a decrease of 31 percent and pulp and paper showed a much smaller decrease of 5.1 percent. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 12 Table 2-3: Forest Industry Activity 2009 - 2018 Comparison Sector Forest Management and Logging Bioenergy Lumber and Wood Preservation Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Pulp and Paper Products Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving Total** 2009 $1,454 - $1,359 $664 Output (Millions of Dollars) 2010 $902 - 2011 $805 - 2012* $662 - $1,176 $1,264 $1,332 $667 $590 $583 $252 $11,018 $86 $996 $497 $579 $16,906 $189 $9,663 $113 $872 $390 $524 $14,495 $180 $10,426 $117 $627 $494 $578 $15,082 $174 $11,297 $90 $1,224 $710 $16,072 2013* $580 $782 $1,272 $1,010 2014 $582 $688 $1,307 $1,071 2015 $605 $439 $1,674 $1,362 2016 $499 $981 $1,690 $1,436 $174 $10,752 $111 $206 $10,936 $118 $312 $12,461 $126 $380 $13,170 $104 $1,249 $1,301 $1,494 $1,710 $624 $634 $732 $824 $16,564 $16,843 $19,205 $20,794 2017 $521 $869 $1,629 $1,499 2018 $504 $590 $1,779 $1,770 $432 $13,214 $101 $605 $13,110 $109 $2,182 $2,054 $901 $966 $21,348 $21,487 Sector Forest Management and Logging Bioenergy Lumber and Wood Preservation Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Pulp and Paper Products Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving Total** 2009 5,119 - 5,469 3,137 1,949 18,936 300 6,827 2,973 3,809 48,519 Employment 2010 5,050 - 4,902 2011 5,036 - 5,538 2012* 5,500 - 5,279 3,025 2,916 2,898 1,409 16,939 473 5,905 2,252 3,470 43,425 1,365 19,012 536 4,724 3,156 4,095 46,378 1,285 19,659 479 7,985 4,017 47,102 2013* 5,714 300 5,177 3,651 1,252 18,754 506 8,434 4,135 47,941 2014 5,720 673 5,242 3,848 1,376 18,538 522 8,676 4,145 48,740 2015 5,820 693 5,527 3,947 1,618 18,919 526 9,008 4,326 50,385 2016 5,920 916 5,520 4,108 1,836 18,983 422 9,646 4,549 51,900 2017 5,738 894 5,662 4,131 2,138 19,252 405 11,242 4,471 53,933 2018 5,609 880 5,806 4,687 2,594 19,572 436 10,585 4,920 55,089 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 13 Wages and Salaries (Millions of Dollars) Sector 2009 2010 Forest Management and Logging $238 $239 Bioenergy - - Lumber and Wood Preservation $250 $238 Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood $158 $163 Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing $66 $44 Pulp and Paper Products $1,494 $1,412 Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery $17 $28 Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork $271 $249 Windows and Doors $126 $100 Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving $150 $151 Total** $2,770 $2,624 *Revised data **Totals may not add up due to rounding ***Output and Wages and Salaries are not adjusted for inflation 2011 $262 - $290 $162 $49 $1,636 $34 $205 $148 $188 $2,973 2012* $305 - $255 $150 $44 $1,620 $26 $331 $186 $2,917 2013* $251 $39 $259 $238 $51 $1,544 $36 $344 $176 $2,938 2014 $255 $45 $267 $253 $56 $1,575 $38 $362 $179 $3,030 2015 $345 $49 $342 $253 $67 $1,796 $35 $449 $218 $3,553 2016 $294 $80 $318 $242 $71 $2,023 $28 $466 $219 $3,741 2017 $312 $147 $348 $250 $92 $1,872 $28 $547 $240 $3,836 2018 $332 $102 $396 $428 $123 $1,776 $28 $552 $282 $4,019 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 14 Figures 2-1 through 2-3 show output, employment, and compensation changes for each forest industry sector from 2009 through 2018. Figure 2-1: Forest Industry Economic Activity: Output by Sector (Dollars in Millions) 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 $0 $5,000 $10,000 Forest Management and Logging Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Pulp and Paper Products Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving $15,000 $20,000 Lumber and Wood Preservation Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Bioenergy (Began tracking in 2012) Figure 2-2: Forest Industry Economic Activity: Employment by Sector 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 Forest Management and Logging Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Pulp and Paper Products Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving Lumber and Wood Preservation Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Bioenergy (Began Tracking in 2012) Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 15 Figure 2-3: Forest Industry Economic Activity: Wages & Salaries by Sector (Dollars in Millions) 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 $0 $500 $1,000 $1,500 $2,000 $2,500 $3,000 $3,500 Forest Management and Logging Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Pulp and Paper Products Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving Lumber and Wood Preservation Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Bioenergy (Began tracking in 2012) $4,000 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 16 SECTION 3 Economic Benefits Economic impact analyses have used basically the same methods for more than 40 years. The tools, although greatly improved in quality and ease of use, are also similar to those in long- time use. The conceptual basis for estimating economic benefits of an industry is that resources brought into Georgia's economy by the industry raise the level of economic activity. This additional economic activity, commonly called the multiplier effect, supports increased employment, income, and business revenues. These increases are estimated from an input- output (I/O) model. The purpose of an I/O model is to estimate the flows of resources among various economic sectors by using the "recipes" followed by producers. These recipes provide the type and amount of goods and services purchased during production, which are produced by other firms. For example, a pulp mill purchases wood from a logger. The logger, in turn, purchases equipment and fuel from firms, that, in turn, purchase their raw materials from still other firms. Combined with estimates of what percentages of these items are supplied by Georgia firms, the recipes can be used to estimate how much of each item is purchased from Georgia firms and how much is purchased from outside Georgia. Purchases from sources outside the Georgia economy are known as "leakage," and have an impact on the multiplier effect; the higher the leakage, the lower the multiplier effect. The impact is calculated with IMPLAN I/O model. IMPLAN is a nationally recognized economic model that uses Georgia data to tailor its estimates to the state economy.5 The analytical process includes three steps following the definition of the industry sectors, as described in the previous section. The first step is to quantify employment, income, and output associated with each of the defined sectors. Several data sources were used to accomplish this. The best source for employment and wages was the employment security data collected and maintained by the Georgia Department of Labor. Commonly called ES202 data or, more recently CEW (covered employment and wages) data, it has the advantage of being current thus allowing an estimate of the economic benefits occurring in 2018. It has the drawback, however, of not including single proprietorships (because they have no employees), and it also does not 5 One area of uncertainty that persists, however, is the level of benefits provided to workers in each of the forest industry sectors. The available wage and salary information does not include benefits, but the I/O model bases its analysis on wages and salaries that include benefits. An average of 28.9 percent was assumed for this analysis, based on the latest available U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics compensation cost data for all civilian employment. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 17 include employees not covered by unemployment insurance, such as some governmental employees. The second task was to divide the forest industry output into two categories; (1) output sold to another Georgia firm and (2) output sold outside the state. Another way to look at this is to recall that the multiplier effect starts from dollars brought into the Georgia economy. Output not sold to another Georgia firm is, by definition, bringing in resources from outside the Georgia economy, and it is these "exports" that fuel the multiplier effect. Forest industry output used as an input to another Georgia forest-industry firm is already accounted for in the multiplier effect; counting it again would result in double-counting and would imply a higher-than-observed level of production from the input-supplying industry. For example, if the multiplier effect was calculated for the paper industry, it will include some of the activities of Georgia logging operations. If the entire output from logging was then added to the multiplier effect for paper, it would double-count the logging output that went to the paper industry. The I/O model is used iteratively for these estimations, with the resulting estimates called "direct impacts." Direct impacts are measures of the output from, in this case, forest sectors that are exported to entities outside Georgia (these are considered exports even if they only go to Alabama). The third step was to use the I/O model to estimate total impacts, which were divided into three components. The first is the direct impacts - the value of resources brought into the state; the second is indirect impacts - impacts generated from recirculation of resources resulting from forest industry purchases from other industries); and the third is induced impacts, which result from activities in the household sector. Adding direct, indirect, and induced impacts yields total impacts. Three measures of economic impacts are provided. The first, output, is a measure of how much each industry or sector produced in 2018 roughly equivalent to a measure of sales revenue. The second measure is compensation, including all household income and employee benefits. The third measure is employment, or number of jobs, in each forestry-related industry. Findings Table 3-1 provides estimates of direct impacts for each of the forest industry sectors contained in the industry's definition. These differ from the level of economic activity shown in Tables 2-2 because Table 3-1 eliminates production consumed by another sector. This eliminates the double counting of production in the multiplier effect of the consuming-industry sector. For example, Table 3-1 does not contain much output from the forest management and logging industry segment because most of it appears to be consumed by the various Georgia wood-using industries such as paper and lumber. Logging operations are included primarily as part of the multiplier effect by these consuming industries, not as a direct impact separate from them. Another way to interpret Table 3-1 is to consider the direct impacts to be estimates of the exports of forestry-related industries. This exporting (to anyone outside Georgia) brings Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 18 resources into the state to support the increase in economic activity estimated by the multiplier effect. Pulp and paper products, which includes all pulping and paper-making activities, continued to be the largest industry segment in 2018 representing 39 percent of the total industry in employment and 63 percent of the entire industry output. The entire forest industry (totals in Table 3-1) exported (to a non-Georgia destination) output valued at $19.8 billion in 2018. These activities supported 48,444 jobs with nearly $3.6 billion in wages and salaries. Table 3-1: Direct Impacts by Forest Industry Sector (2018) Sector Forest Management and Logging Bioenergy Lumber and Wood Preservation Veneer, Plywood, Reconstituted, and Engineered Wood Prefabricated Wood Buildings and Manufactured Housing Pulp and Paper Products Woodworking and Paper Industries Machinery Wooden Furniture, Cabinets, Custom Arch. & Millwork, Windows and Doors Containers, Showcases, Partitions, and Shelving Total Output Employment $214.6 M $586.4 M $1,306.8 M $1,579.8 M 2,422 875 4,264 4,265 $594.2 M $12,485.9 M $102.1 M $1,999.0 M $919.1 M $19,788.1 M 2,549 18,674 406 10,332 4,657 48,444 Wages and Salaries $148.0 M $101.3 M $290.6 M $393.2 M $120.4 M $1,692.5 M $26.4 M $537.4 M $266.6 M $3,576.4 M In addition to direct employment, Georgia's forest industry generates economic activity and supports jobs in other sectors of the state's economy. The total impact is estimated by applying the IMPLAN input-output (I/O) model to the direct impacts (provided in Table 3-1.) Table 3-2 summarizes the impacts by aggregated industry codes (used in the I/O model), which are roughly equivalent to two-digit NAICS codes. As shown, all industries in Georgia are impacted by the activity of the forest industry. Manufacturing continued to see the biggest benefits, with $21.3 billion in output, 50,737 employees, and $3.7 billion in wages and salaries in 2018. A distant second in output and wages and salaries was wholesale trade with $1.9 billion and $662.8 million, respectively; while administrative and waste services was second in employment with 10,569 employees. The total economic activity supported by Georgia's forest industry totaled $36.3 billion. This activity supported the employment of 148,414 people who earned $9.1 billion in 2018. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 19 Table 3-2: Total Benefits by Major Industry (2018) Sector Agriculture, Forestry, Fish & Hunting Mining Utilities Construction Manufacturing Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Transportation & Warehousing Information Finance & Insurance Real Estate & Rental Professional, Scientific & Tech Services Management of Companies Administrative & Waste Services Educational Services Health & Social Services Arts, Entertainment & Recreation Accommodation & Food Services Other Services Government & non-NAICS Industries TOTAL Output $896.9 M $41.6 M $1,526.4 M $294.3 M $21,249.4 M $1,860.0 M $744.8 M $1,237.9 M $850.1 M $1,302.5 M $1,617.9 M $1,097.6 M $751.2 M $686.9 M $113.7 M $873.1 M $129.2 M $515.6 M $443.5 M $29.7 M $36,262.4 M Employment Wages & Salaries 9,906 231 1,859 1,810 50,737 7,675 8,553 8,104 1,656 4,821 3,914 8,343 3,040 10,569 1,802 8,253 1,946 8,515 6,486 195 $553.2 M $13.3 M $232.7 M $103.0 M $3,731.9 M $662.8 M $273.9 M $497.4 M $228.4 M $351.4 M $108.6 M $627.1 M $377.7 M $341.6 M $71.3 M $480.5 M $40.1 M $180.4 M $213.2 M $16.5 M 148,414 $9,105.1 M Table 3-3 extracts information from several previous tables to compare the overall results obtained in each impact analysis conducted from 2008 through 2018. In the 2008-2009 period, forest industry output declined by 8 percent, and employment and wages and salaries from total impacts fell by 16 and 12 percent, respectively. The decline was not a surprise given that the U.S economy was in recession. The two sectors that declined the most (in percentage terms) were prefabricated buildings and veneer, plywood, and reconstituted wood products. Productivity increases were apparent in forest industry sectors (pulp and paper products, for example) as well as sectors stimulated by the multiplier effect, which would serve to allow output increases with employment declines. From 2009 to 2010, the decline in industry activity accelerated with output declining by about 14 percent. Employment and compensation, however, declined by smaller percentages, compared to the previous year, with declines of almost 11 percent and 5 percent, respectively. Total impacts did not decline as much in percentage terms in all parameters, probably because compensation declined the least, and induced impacts almost always depend on income. In the Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 20 fiscal impact analysis, both revenues and costs declined, but because the cost decline was slightly larger than the revenue decline, net revenues actually increased slightly. The forest industry's activity picked up pace in 2011, showing growth after three years of continuous decline. Both direct and total impacts showed improvement. However, total impacts showed higher growth in percentage terms than direct impacts. In the 2010 to 2011 period output increased by nearly 6 percent, employment increased by nearly 10 percent, and wages and salaries increased by an impressive 21 percent. As Table 3-3 shows, the trend of positive growth continued in the 2011 2017 period among all metrics, with the exception of wages and salaries that showed a slight decline of 2 percent from 2011 to 2012. Direct and total output impacts showed the highest growth at 14 and 12 percent, respectively, during the 2014 2015 period. Compensation also showed substantial growth during this time period increasing by 17 percent for direct impact and 10 percent for total impacts. Employment from direct impacts showed the highest level of growth during the 2016 2017 period with 4 percent. Employment from total impacts grew by 9 percent from 2015 to 2016. While the industry continued to grow in year 2018, the rate of growth in direct and total output of 1 percent, which is equivalent to sales, was smaller than in previous years. The slower rate of growth may indicate a lower level of activity within sectors of the forest industry. Wages and salaries from direct and total impacts increased at higher rates, nearly 5 percent respectively. Employment grew 2 percent from direct impact and 1 percent from total impact. Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 21 The annual percent-change information in Table 3-3 is also presented graphically in figures 3-1 and 3-2. Figure 3-1 presents a graph of output, employment and compensation of direct activity, while Figure 3-2 presents these metrics for the total economic impact. It should be noted that these data are in nominal dollars and have not been adjusted for inflation. As the graphs show, all direct and total impact metrics realized growth compared to 2017 rates, with wages and salaries showing the highest increase in direct and total impacts. Output* Employment Wages & Salaries* 2008 $18,270 57,812 $3,131 Output Employment Wages & Salaries 2009 $16,906 48,519 $2,770 -7.5% -16.1% -11.5% Table 3-3: Comparison of Results 2008 to 2018 (Dollars in millions; Employment in persons) Forest Industry Direct Economic Impact 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 $14,495 $15,082 $16,072 $16,564 $16,843 43,425 46,378 47,123 48,139 48,740 $2,624 $2,972 $2,917 $2,938 $3,030 Year to Year Percent Change -14.3% 4.0% 6.6% 3.1% 1.7% -10.5% 6.8% 1.6% 2.2% 1.2% -5.3% 13.3% -1.9% 0.7% 3.1% 2015 $19,203 50,385 $3,553 14.0% 3.4% 17.3% 2016 $20,794 51,900 $3,741 2017 $21,348 53,933 $3,836 2018 $21,488 55,089 $4,018 8.3% 2.7% 0.7% 3.0% 3.9% 2.1% 5.3% 2.5% 4.7% Output* Employment Wages & Salaries* 2008 $28,723 128,388 $6,514 Output Employment Wages & Salaries 2009 $27,200 118,423 $5,561 -5.3% -7.8% -14.6% Total Impacts 2010 2011 2012 2013 $23,643 $24,975 $27,469 $28,014 108,112 118,459 120,260 127,750 $5,377 $6,491 $6,540 $6,898 Year to Year Percent Change -13.1% -8.7% -3.3% 5.6% 9.6% 20.7% 10.0% 1.5% 0.8% 2.0% 6.2% 5.5% 2014 $28,674 129,329 $7,119 2.4% 1.2% 3.2% 2015 $32,154 133,256 $7,860 12.1% 3.0% 10.4% 2016 $35,237 144,537 $8,529 2017 $35,923 147,380 $8,709 2018 $36,262 148,414 $9,105 9.6% 1.9% 0.9% 8.5% 2.0% 0.7% 8.5% 2.1% 4.5% Forest Industry Fiscal Impact 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 State Revenues $539 $472 $448 $487 $691 $700 $721 State Costs $333 $314 $282 $308 $358 $360 $370 Net Revenues* $206 $158 $166 $179 $333 $340 $351 Source: Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2) impact assessments and Georgia Department of Labor, Current Employment and Wages 2015 $753 $393 $360 2016 $778 $433 $345 2017 $970 $873 $97 2018 $977 $867 $109 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 22 Percent Change 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% 0.00% -5.00% -10.00% -15.00% -20.00% Figure 3-1: Annual Percent Change in Direct Economic Activity 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Output Employment Wages & Salaries 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% 0.00% -5.00% -10.00% -15.00% -20.00% Figure 3-2: Annual Percent Change in Total Economic Activity 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Output Employment Wages & Salaries Percent Change Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 23 Comparison of the Forest Industry with Other Manufacturing Sectors It is difficult to appreciate the significance of the impacts generated by the forest industry without some basis of comparison. This comparison is provided in Table 3-4, which shows that the forest industry is the second largest industry sector in Georgia, behind food processing, in employment and in wages and salaries. Table 3-4: Comparison to Georgia's Other Manufacturing Sectors (2018) Industry Sectors Food Processing Forest Industry Transportation Equipment Textiles Fabricated Metal Products Machinery Chemicals Electrical Equipment and Appliances Printing Computers and Electronic Products Apparel Employment 68,035 55,089 54,687 51,203 39,377 21,898 21,783 13,890 13,055 5,996 2,446 Wages & Salaries $4,037.6 M $4,017.5 M $3,826.2 M $2,314.1 M $2,120.4 M $1,598.2 M $1,338.7 M $1,017.5 M $625.5 M $625.3 M $96.2 M Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 24 SECTION 4 Economic Impact of Urban and Community Forestry Urban and community forestry6 provides significant benefits to communities around the state. This study quantifies the sector's economic impact in the state of Georgia. For the purposes of this study, urban and community forestry includes these sectors: NAICS Code 111421 541320 561730 924120 925120 Industry Description Nursery and Tree Production Landscape Architectural Services Landscaping Services Administration of Conservation programs Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development Using data provided by the Georgia Department of Labor,7 it was determined that urban and community forestry employed 33,113 people in year 2018 who earned $1.2 billion in wages and salaries and generated $2.2 billion in economic activity. The spending by these companies and their employees generated additional activity in other sectors of the state's economy. Overall, urban and community forestry companies in 2018 created and supported 46,400 jobs with wages and salaries of $1.8 billion and generated $4.2 billion of economic activity. Table 4-1: Economic Impact of Urban and Community Forestry: 2018 Direct Indirect and Induced Total Employment 33,113 13,287 46,400 Wages & Salaries $1,151.8 M $645.7 M $1,797.5 M Output $2,226.8 M $1,946.9 M $4,173.7 M The impact values of urban and community forestry are separate values from the impact of forest industry and are not included in the charts and tables shown in other sections of this report. 6 Urban and Community Forestry can be defined as the planning, establishment, protection, maintenance and management of trees and associated plants, individually through arboricultural practices, in small groups, or under forest conditions (open spaces, greenbelts, roadside screens, parks, woodlands, curb areas, and residential developments) within cities, their suburbs, and towns for their economic, environmental, physiological, sociological and psychological public health benefits (developed from the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978, as amended through 2008). 7 Source: Georgia Department of Labor, ES202 data Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 25 Section 5 Economic Impact by Regional Commission Regional Economies Economies are interwoven in a complex web. In general, however, a local economy's economic health depends on the inflow and outflow of resources. Economic base theory calls economic sectors responsible for bringing resources in "basic" or "traded" sectors. The resources that are brought in are then (at least partially) recirculated within the local economy to support the "non-basic" sectors. For example, a sawmill will generally sell its products to builders or lumber supply houses outside the local economy. The revenue it receives from these sales is then used to purchase logs from, perhaps, a local logging firm. It also pays its employees who spend their wages in local restaurants, grocery stores, and the like. As the basic sector grows or declines, so does the non-basic sector. Forest industry components are very much part of Georgia's basic industry sector, with products sold worldwide. As such, it is one of the key sources of funds flowing into many local Georgia economies. Where the local economy has many sources of such flows, the growth or decline of any specific sector, such as the forest industry, may not have significant effects. However, in those communities where the forest industry is a large proportion of the local basic industry, all economic support activities, such as retail, are likewise generally dependent. Approach Employment and income data limitations at the county level make it difficult to quantify the local economic impact of the forest industry. Instead, this report shows the forest industry's impact on Georgia's 12 regional commissions. Table 5-1 shows a list of the regional commissions and their respective counties. Regions Northwest Georgia Georgia Mountains ATL Regional Commission Three Rivers Northeast Georgia Middle Georgia Table 5-1: Regional Commissions Counties Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Fannin, Floyd, Gilmer, Gordon, Haralson, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Walker, Whitfield Banks, Dawson, Forsyth, Franklin, Habersham, Hall, Hart, Lumpkin, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union, White Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Rockdale Butts, Carroll, Coweta, Heard, Lamar, Meriwether, Pike, Spalding, Troup, Upson Barrow, Clarke, Elbert, Greene, Jackson, Jasper, Madison, Morgan, Newton, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Walton Baldwin, Bibb, Crawford, Houston, Jones, Monroe, Peach, Pulaski, Putnam, Twiggs, Wilkinson Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 26 Central Savannah River Area River Valley Heart of Georgia Altamaha Southwest Georgia Burke, Columbia, Glascock, Hancock, Jefferson, Jenkins, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond, Taliaferro, Warren, Washington, Wilkes Chattahoochee, Clay, Crisp, Dooly, Harris, Macon, Marion, Muscogee, Quitman, Randolph, Schley, Stewart, Sumter, Talbot, Taylor, Webster Appling, Bleckley, Candler, Dodge, Emanuel, Evans, Jeff Davis, Johnson, Laurens, Montgomery, Tattnall, Telfair, Toombs, Treutlen, Wayne, Wheeler, Wilcox Baker, Calhoun, Colquitt, Decatur, Dougherty, Early, Grady, Lee, Miller, Mitchell, Seminole, Terrell, Thomas, Worth Southern Georgia Atkinson, Bacon, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brantley, Brooks, Charlton, Clinch, Coffee, Cook, Echols, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Pierce, Tift, Turner, Ware Coastal Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, Screven Source: Georgia Department of Community Affairs Figure 5-1: Map of Regional Commissions Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 27 This analysis examines the proportion of each region's output, employment, and compensation (as defined by wages and salaries) indicated by the ES202 data that is attributable directly to forest industries. These figures were calculated using 6-digit NAICS level data and should be considered as approximate estimates. Table 5-2 shows that as in the previous years, the Atlanta Regional Commission, Southern Georgia and the Heart of Georgia Altamaha are the top three regions with the largest employment in the forest industry. See Figures A-1 through A- 3 in the Appendix for maps showing each region's output, employment, and wages and salaries. Table 5-2: Forest Industry's Regional Impact (2018) Regions Atlanta Regional Commission Central Savannah River Area Coastal Georgia Mountains Heart of Georgia Altamaha Middle Georgia Northeast Georgia Northwest Georgia River Valley Southern Georgia Southwest Georgia Three Rivers Total Output $5,724.4 M $1,538.5 M $2,318.7 M $796.8 M $1,796.6 M $1,324.0 M $1,218.6 M $1,462.2 M $742.8 M $1,741.7 M $1,610.1 M $1,213.2 M $21,487.8 M Employment 12,704 3,670 4,770 2,691 4,760 3,493 3,186 3,949 1,973 5,633 4,604 3,654 55,089 Wages & Salaries $1,070.3 M $287.7 M $433.5 M $149.0 M $335.9 M $247.5 M $227.8 M $273.4 M $138.9 M $325.6 M $301.0 M $226.8 M $4,017.5 M Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 28 References Bureau of Economic Analysis Input-Output Sectors as contained in "IMPLAN Pro: Data Guide," IMPLAN Group, Inc.,2019. Georgia Department of Labor, ES202 Wage and Employment Data: 2018. North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS): http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naicstab.htm U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation" Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 29 Appendix Figure A-1: Regional Forest Industry Employment: 2018 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 30 Figure A-2: Regional Forest Industry Wages and Salaries: 2018 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 31 Figure A-3: Regional Forest Industry Output: 2018 Economic Benefits of the Forest Industry in Georgia: 2018 Page 32