In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic changed the nature of work for many Americans, and the use of these attraction programs escalated quickly. Remote work attraction has quickly become a valuable strategy for municipalities aiming to bolster and target their economic development. The rise of this tool, with its focus on individual community investment rather than traditional models of employer attraction or workforce development, has the potential to reshape economic development policy at the local level. This brief explores the nature of these programs: where they are, what they offer, their conditions, and their early indicators of success.

In order to understand what incentivizes municipalities to pursue these policies, we investigated 26 programs covering 36 counties and cities across the United States. We compiled data on population and age dynamics in each geography to understand the potential demographic incentives for attracting a young and educated remote population. Few reports exist about the success of these policies, but early results suggest that they are successful forms of attraction in the new age of worker mobility.