In an economic impact study, which item would be considered a direct impact?

• A. Airport employee salaries
• B. Visitor spending at the gift shop
• C. Local tax exemptions
• D. Road improvements around the airport

Answer: (A)

The question tests how direct effects are defined in an economic impact study. Direct impacts are the immediate, on-site economic activities created by the organization itself. Paying salaries to airport employees is the clearest example: it’s money that the airport directly injects into the local economy through its own payroll.

In contrast, money spent by visitors in the airport’s shop is a downstream spending effect tied to tourism activity and the visitor presence, not the airport’s own payroll. Local tax exemptions are policy tools, not actual spending or production, and road improvements around the airport are broader infrastructure investments that reflect indirect or induced effects rather than the airport’s direct operations.