ISSN 1075–8445

This article summarizes my study of the effects of high-quality universal preschool education when it is treated as an economic development program. The study fi nds that each dollar that a state government invests in universal preschool education is estimated to increase the present value of earnings of state residents by about $3 and all U.S. residents by about $4. From a state government perspective, universal preschool education provides economic development benefi ts that complement the benefi ts provided by traditional economic development tax subsidies to business. Traditional economic development subsidies create more jobs for state residents in the short- and medium run, but universal preschool education creates more jobs in the long run. From a national perspective, the average state’s investments in universal NOTE: The full report referred to in this article is available a