Daniel MacDonald is a professor of economics at Cal State San Bernardino. He also writes a free Substack newsletter called Inland Empire Economic Intelligence. A few weeks ago, he published a response to a report authored by Chris Thornberg with Beacon Economics.Last year, the FAST Act was passed, which raised the minimum wage for fast food workers in California to $20 an hour. In his report, Thornberg argues that employment in the fast food sector declined since quarter two of 2024, when the Act was passed. MacDonald disagreed and authored a response to this report on his Substack, which he's talking to us about today.

On today’s episode, I’m speaking to Tomás Gomez-Arias. He’s the dean of the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration at Cal State San Bernardino. We spoke about the School of Entrepreneurship, which is part of the College of Business and the first of its kind in California.

For 91.9 KVCR News, I’m Madison Aument, and this is Economics I.E. Normally, I sit down with experts, workers, and policymakers to talk about how money moves through the Inland Empire and what it means for you. But this week, I’m switching it up. Instead of an interview, I’m running through some economic facts —hidden trends, unexpected stats, and big-picture shifts that impact everything from housing to jobs to the cost of living.

For 91.9 KVCR News, I'm Madison Aument. This is Economics IE. Each month, IEGO, a nonprofit focused on economic growth in the Inland Empire publishes the IE Labor Market Pulse, a newsletter that analyzes monthly employment data to provide insight into the region's labor market. Today, I'm speaking with Matthew Mena, the executive director of IEGO, about March's job numbers.

Today, I'm speaking with Jonathan Lansner, a business columnist with the Southern California News Group, which publishes The Press-Enterprise and The San Bernardino Sun. We discussed a column he published last week analyzing wage increases across California over the past five years.

Last week, Congressman Pete Aguilar, who represents parts of southwestern San Bernardino County, joined Meals on Wheels and the Family Service Administration to deliver meals to seniors in Fontana and San Bernardino. Aguilar says he wants to highlight how important programs like these are—especially amid the confusion surrounding President Trump’s executive order to freeze federal spending. Two judges ruled the Trump administration must pause its federal spending freeze, but uncertainty remains.

For 91.9 KVCR News, I’m Madison Aument and this is Economics IE. Today, I’m speaking with Jackie Benson, an economist with Wells Fargo, about how economic policy under the new Trump presidency could affect the Inland Empire.

For 91.9 KVCR News, I'm Madison Aument and this is Economics IE. Temecula Valley has some 50 wineries that attract locals and tourists alike, but now several winery owners are in the market to sell. Pat Maio is a reporter with the Orange County Register, who's reported on the wave of people looking to get out of the Temecula wine business.

For 91.9 KVCR News, I’m Madison Aument and this is Economics IE. I’m breaking form a bit for this holiday week and give y’all a general update on what’s going on with the Inland Empire’s economy this month.

Prop 36… which allows felony charges and increased sentences for certain drug and theft crimes… passed with broad support. Here in the Inland Empire, the San Bernardino County board of supervisors and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco were strong proponents of it. I spoke with Caitlin O’Neil with the Legislative Analyst Office… a nonpartisan fiscal and policy advisor for the state government… to help parse out the potential fiscal impact of Prop 36.