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Avista economist tells Spokane Valley council health-care growth masks regional weakness; warns of inflation and rate risk

Spokane Valley City Council · April 21, 2026
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

Dr. Grant Forsyth presented a regional economic forecast to Spokane Valley council, saying health care has been the primary driver of employment growth locally and warning that inflation and energy-price shocks could worsen municipal budgeting pressures.

Dr. Grant Forsyth, chief economist for Avista Corporation, told Spokane Valley council on April 21 that while the U.S. economy is expected to continue modest growth, the region's recent employment gains are heavily dependent on the health-care sector. Removing health-care employment from local figures, Forsyth said, would leave the metro area with weak or negative growth.

Forsyth highlighted several factors city leaders should consider for budgeting: potential federal health-care reimbursement…

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