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Covington businesses contribute billions to local economy, report says

Covington, Kentucky skyline.
Ynsalh
/
Wikimedia Commons
Covington, Kentucky skyline.

A group of Covington businesses have a nearly $30 billion total impact on the local economy. That’s according to a report done for the Covington Business Council by Northern Kentucky University’s Center for Economic Analysis and Development, presented Thursday.

Center Senior Director Janet Harrah says that total economic impact is generated in several ways.

“Part of that's payroll,” Harrah said. “So that's all the people that work at these companies, that's the money they take home every week to pay for groceries, to pay for their house payment, to buy their kids school clothes.”

Another part comes from spending done by businesses.

“They're buying other services from other companies in the region,” Harrah said. “They're buying payroll services. They're buying uniforms, housekeeping, those types of things.”

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The report looked at the more than 500 companies that are part of the Covington Business Council. They create nearly 100,000 jobs across several industries.

The five industries with the largest total economic impact in Northern Kentucky are:

1. Energy distribution: $12.87 billion

2. Telecommunications: $5.66 billion

3. Hospitals: $3.5 billion

4. Banking, finance and insurance: $2.8 billion

5. Waste and recycling: $1.86 billion

The report also found that the Covington businesses pay $1.89 billion in taxes to local governments and the commonwealth.

Isabel joined WVXU in 2024 to cover the environment.