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This paper utilizes a novel dynamic propensity score matching approach for multiple cohorts of U.S. counties between 1989 and 1999 to examine local economy resilience to rare natural disasters. Affected counties are sorted based on disaster intensity and are carefully matched to similar counties that did not experience a disaster. A difference-in-difference estimator compares trends of affected counties' postdisaster business establishments, employment, and payroll to counterfactual trends in the matched counties. All affected counties experienced short-run drops in economic activity that was particularly noticeable in higher-intensity disasters. In the longer run, less distressed counties returned to their estimated counterfactual trends, but countieswith lower predisaster socioeconomic conditions still lagged in growth, particularly in cases of lowerintensity disasters. Policymakers can use this information to better prepare responses to future disasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper examines the continued strong population growth in U.S. nonmetropolitan areas possessing high levels of natural amenities during the 1990s and the reasons for near convergence of growth across the top tiers of the amenity hierarchy. Based on estimated parsimonious spatial hedonic growth regressions, strong demand for high-amenity areas continued in the 1990s, but the converging of population growth across the top tiers appeared related to capitalization of amenity differences among the tiers into factor prices. Yet, evidence obtained from controlling for spatial effects suggests that the relative quality of life in the top two tiers had deteriorated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]