confidential survey of the entire population of current users of the Georgia Ports Authority’s facilities was conducted in 2003 to identify the industries that utilize the ports, their sales, and the extent to which they depend on the ports. The Economic Impact of Georgia’s Deepwater Ports on Georgia’s Economy in FY 2003 (April 2004) contains both the survey instrument and a brief summary of responses. Secondary sources of information supplemented and updated the information obtained from the surveys. These include: (1) The U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis’ historical data on gross domestic product and output, gross state product, and personal income. (2) The U.S. Department of Labor’s and the Georgia Department of Labor’s historical data on employment by industry. (3) U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration, Office of Ports and Domestic Shipping on the economic impact of ports users at the national level. (4) Studies of the economic impacts of the U.S. Deepwater Port System prepared for the American Association of Port Authorities. (5) The Georgia Department of Community Affairs and the Department of Industry Trade and Tourism’s summary information from their survey of manufacturers regarding their international trade activity and current and future exports of their products. (6) County-level data provided by PIERS on the volume and estimated value of imports and exports for Georgia. Based on an analysis of the surveys and secondary information sources, it was determined that port-related sales (output) totaled $84 billion in Georgia in fiscal year 2021. Manufacturers were estimated to account for about 81 per- cent of port-related sales, while wholesale/distribution/warehousing/storage activities accounted for about 12 percent of port-related sales, and agriculture, forestry, and mining accounted for the remaining 7 percent. The IMPLAN modeling system was used to estimate the indirect and induced economic impact of ports users’ direct expenditures in fiscal year 2021. A detailed discussion of the IMPLAN modeling system, including its structure, methods, and use, can be found at www.implan.com. The Results T he total economic impact of Georgia’s deepwater ports on output, GDP, income, and employment is summarized in Table 3. The direct, indirect plus induced, and the total economic impacts of Georgia’s deepwater ports in terms of output, income, and gross state product are reported in Table 4. Similarly, Table 5 and Table 6 report the employment and tax impacts, respectively. Table 7 reports the overall multiplier values for output, employment, income, and GDP. Table 8 reports the total economic impacts of cargo-based activity by mode of cargo at the Georgia Ports Authority’s operations in Savannah and Brunswick. Table 9 shows the economic impacts per 1,000 TEUs of container cargo at the Port of Savannah. Table 10 details the total employment impact by county. More detailed tabulations of the economic impact of Georgia’s deepwater ports are included in the Appendix. n Output Impacts n Measured in the broadest terms, the total economic impact of the Port of Savannah and the Port of Brunswick on Georgia’s economy is $140 billion, which is 12 percent of Georgia’s output in FY 2021. Out of the total, $7 billion (5 percent) represents the results from the ports industry, of which the GPA’s opera- tions at the Port of Savannah contribute 89 percent. Ports users’ total output impact, however, is eighteen times greater than that of the ports industry—$133 billion. Indeed, ports users account for 95 percent of the total output impact of Georgia’s deepwater ports. Of the FY 2021 total output impact, $83 billion represents initial spending, or direct economic impact; $58 billion is indirect and induced spending, or the re-spending (multiplier) impact. Dividing the FY 2021 total output impact ($140 billion) by direct spending ($83 billion) yields an average multiplier value of 1.70. On average, therefore, every dollar initially spent by either the ports industry or ports users generates an additional 70 cents for the state’s economy. 7
