The second program was presented by economist Dr. Alfie Meek, Director of Community Innovation Services. Dr. Meek cited statistics about the U.S. economy, ranging from the percentage of people currently at the poverty level to economic trends over the last several decades. He tracked the jobless situation on the national, state, and county level and compared the impact of recessions in the last century. He pointed out that Gwinnett County has experienced a growth in low wage jobs in the last decade. In the late 90s the wealth index was high in the county, but that is not the case now. He tracked building permits and gave a digest of net taxes over time. He forecast another recession in the future and expressed pessimism about the ability of the country to get out of debt.