Robert Puentes
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robpuentes.bsky.social
Robert Puentes
@robpuentes.bsky.social
Vice President and Director of Brookings Metro. Formerly President & CEO of the Eno Center for Transportation.
1/2 The DMV Monitor, a new data interactive from @brookings.edu and MWCOG tracks real-time changes in the regional economy to help inform policymakers and the public of the impacts of federal spending and staffing cuts.
September 27, 2025 at 3:51 PM
1/2 Good and reliable data is under threat as the Trump administration removes federal data sets and scrambles the people and agencies responsible for collecting accurate statistics.
August 28, 2025 at 5:52 PM
1/3 Hard to believe it was 20 years ago that Hurricane #Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, especially New Orleans. Katrina reshaped the nation’s understanding of disasters, equitable recovery, and resilience to future climate events.
August 20, 2025 at 4:07 PM
1/2 Despite violent crime at 30-year lows in DC, Trump deployed National Guard citing 'violent gangs.' This retreat from evidence-based community safety ignores proven local solutions.
August 14, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Reposted by Robert Puentes
Politicizing federal statistics compromises the ability of policymakers to properly analyze the state of the economy and develop the best policies to ensure prosperity, write former chairs of the Council of Economic Advisers Cecilia Rouse and Gregory Mankiw. Read their new op-ed:
Opinion | Firing the BLS commissioner will come back to haunt Trump
It will compromise policymakers’ ability to analyze the economy and ensure prosperity.
www.washingtonpost.com
August 5, 2025 at 4:18 PM
New from @brookings.edu Prez Cecelia Rouse: Federal statistics make it possible for business & policymakers to plan for the future. And that is something everyone should care about.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | Firing the BLS commissioner will come back to haunt Trump
It will compromise policymakers’ ability to analyze the economy and ensure prosperity.
www.washingtonpost.com
August 5, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Bill Frey @BrookingsMetro shows Hispanic, Asian American, multiracial populations were 93% of US population growth 2023-4. #Immigration remains essential to stem the decline of America’s youth population.
connect.brookings.edu/the-fast-gro...
The fast-growing demographic groups driving US population growth
connect.brookings.edu
August 5, 2025 at 1:29 PM
The season finale of @brookings.edu new podcast is up! It features Xav Briggs convo w Melanie Allen (Hive Fund for Climate & Gender Justice) & RJ McGrail (Lincoln Land) on local communities & the clean energy transition.

Click here for all the eps! www.brookings.edu/tags/metro-b...
Metro Blueprint | Brookings
On Metro Blueprint, Brookings Metro scholars and a guests discuss ideas and actions to create more prosperous, just, and resilient communities in America.
www.brookings.edu
July 31, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Reposted by Robert Puentes
How has New Orleans recovered and adapted in the two decades since Hurricane Katrina? In a new @brookings.edu and The Data Center research series, authors dive into how the metro area is building greater resilience. Read more--> www.brookings.edu/collection/n...
New Orleans 20 years after Hurricane Katrina | Brookings
www.brookings.edu
July 28, 2025 at 5:23 PM
1/2 Its been 20 years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, especially New Orleans. The storm reshaped the nation’s understanding of disasters, equitable recovery, and resilience to future climate events.
July 28, 2025 at 6:16 PM
ICYMI: check out this new @brookings.edu analysis by @markmuro1.bsky.social @shriyared.bsky.social mapping the #AI economy. Among others they find high concentration in a limited number of metro areas, but numerous other regions are home to meaningful AI activity
www.brookings.edu/articles/map...
July 21, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Nearly 350 years after its establishment as a colonial center for global trade, agriculture, early manufacturing, and shipbuilding, the Philadelphia region is now viewed as a national hub for life sciences, health care, education, and professional services.
July 9, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Reposted by Robert Puentes
I have a new piece out about how the House reconciliation bill will harm rural households.

Not only will it rural folks lose health coverage & food access, hospitals are more likely to close and businesses will struggle.

All for a tax cut skewed towards the wealthy.
www.cbpp.org/research/fed...
House Republican Reconciliation Bill Would Harm Rural Households, Communities, and Economies | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
The bill continues the pattern under this Administration of hurting the people the President pledged to help.
www.cbpp.org
June 10, 2025 at 1:23 PM
🚦NYC’s congestion pricing is cutting traffic & cleaning the air. Could it be a model for other cities?

🎙️ New @brookings.edu Metro Blueprint episode w/ Adie Tomer & Polly Trottenberg dives into the early wins, challenges & what’s next.

🎧 Listen: www.brookings.edu/articles/wil...

#CongestionPricing
Will New York's congestion pricing program pave the way for broader adoption?
Experts explore how New York City created a successful congestion pricing plan that has so far reduced traffic and increased transit ridership while retaining a bustling downtown. Adie Tomer, senior f...
www.brookings.edu
June 4, 2025 at 4:45 PM
#Crypto policy isnt just for techies and investors. Millions could be impacted but most arent in the room
In a new @brookings.edu piece @tonantzin-lc.bsky.social says communities, consumers, workers need a real say

📖 brookings.edu/articles/protecting-the-american-public-from-crypto-risks-and-harms
Protecting the American public from crypto risks and harms
brookings.edu
June 4, 2025 at 4:33 PM
"The results are damning. Our analysis shows that transit trips in the District take on average over 2.5 times longer than driving the same route."

ggwash.org/view/99532/d...

Damning, indeed.
The District’s transportation system taxes everyone’s time
DC residents pay a transportation time tax that harms riders and drivers alike.
ggwash.org
May 22, 2025 at 5:45 PM
And subscribe now to Metro Blueprint on your favorite podcast app, or find us on Apple, Spotify, and the link below, to start getting new episodes when they are published.
www.brookings.edu/tags/metro-b...
Metro Blueprint
On Metro Blueprint, Brookings Metro scholars and a guests discuss ideas and actions to create more prosperous, just, and resilient communities in America.
www.brookings.edu
May 21, 2025 at 3:22 PM
1/2 Check out the new episode of Metro Blueprint, a podcast from @brookings.edu Metro. In this episode, @lohplaces.bsky.social speaks with Kurt Weigle (Greater St. Louis Inc) about how cities can break the “urban doom loop” and convert offices to residential housing www.brookings.edu/articles/st-...
St. Louis shows how cities can break the "urban doom loop"
In this episode, experts take a deep dive into how St. Louis is using office-to-residential conversions to build affordable housing and a vibrant downtown. Tracy Hadden Loh, a fellow at Brookings, and...
www.brookings.edu
May 21, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Starting now: @brookings.edu event: Pathways to regional prosperity, the case for investing in transformative infrastructure. Tun in here -->
www.brookings.edu/events/pathw...
Pathways to regional prosperity
On Wednesday, May 14, Brookings Metro will hold a public event to explore how the federal government can support greater investment in regions, localities, and their infrastructure systems.
www.brookings.edu
May 14, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Happy #InfrastructureWeek !

Register today to attend this week's Brookings Metro event with @repricklarsen.bsky.social, Adie Tomer, & regional practitioners on how the federal government can support greater investment in regions, localties, and infrastructure.

www.brookings.edu/events/pathw...
Pathways to regional prosperity
On Wednesday, May 14, Brookings Metro will hold a public event to explore how the federal government can support greater investment in regions, localities, and their infrastructure systems.
www.brookings.edu
May 12, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Reposted by Robert Puentes
JHEC has a new call for papers: Special Issue on Local Public Finance & Housing. Local govts act as gatekeepers of development AND providers of key public services (schools, roads, safety). Better research can help us understand interactions between these roles.
www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
Journal of Housing Economics | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier - Journal of Housing Economics | ScienceDirect.com by ElsevierScienceDirect
Read the latest articles of Journal of Housing Economics at ScienceDirect.com, Elsevier’s leading platform of peer-reviewed scholarly literature
www.sciencedirect.com
May 12, 2025 at 1:15 PM
LAUNCHING TODAY: I’m thrilled to announce publication of the first episode of Metro Blueprint, a podcast from Brookings Metro. I'll be your host and...
What are the economic and legal implications of President Trump’s DEI and LGBTQIA executive orders?
In this first episode of Metro Blueprint, experts discuss how efforts to weaken DEI protections result in taking away resources from people who deserve them. Andre Perry, a senior fellow at Brookings ...
www.brookings.edu
April 23, 2025 at 2:26 PM
1/2 A network of leaders from across the five-county Philly region, has come together with support from @brookings.edu Metro & @pewtrusts.org to deliver a market assessment, engage partners to prioritize industries, develop strategies, establish a shared operating structure for implementation.
Southeastern Pennsylvania needs more quality jobs to seize its full economic potential
Southeastern Pennsylvania’s economy has lagged in both economic growth and economic mobility
www.brookings.edu
April 2, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Where on the map might #GenerativeAI benefit or harm workers most? That's the question of a new brief out from @markmuro1.bsky.social, Shriya Methkupally, and
@MollyKinder

brookings.edu/articles/the...

#AIFutureofWork
The geography of generative AI’s workforce impacts will likely differ from those of previous technologies
As the generative AI race heats up, it’s important to examine where in the U.S. the technology might boost or harm workers, or if place even matters.
brookings.edu
February 21, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Reposted by Robert Puentes
China’s retaliatory tariffs will hurt Trump-voting counties most, say @brookings.edu analysts Mark Muro and Rob Maxim www.brookings.edu/articles/chi...
China’s retaliatory tariffs will hurt Trump-voting counties most
While the China clash will play out globally and strategically, its potential impacts will be localized and varied, since different regions have different local industry mixes and structures.
www.brookings.edu
February 7, 2025 at 12:10 PM