(ARA) – When a January storm dumped snow and ice on Georgia it meant no school and homework for days, giving happy children a chance to sled, make snow angels and build snowmen. Atlanta businesses, however, were not so thrilled.

Some small businesses lost an entire week of revenue as the region, and the economy, waited for the thaw. An owner of an Atlanta company that manages five restaurants said he was losing tens of thousands of dollars every day as people hunkered down in their homes. While many salaried workers were paid as they usually are, despite the shutdown, hourly wage earners suffered a direct and immediate hit on their paychecks.

Like many cities surprised by the severity of winter storms, Atlanta was not prepared to fight the snow and ice, and paid a steep price, not just economically, but in national perception. There was a political cost, too, with Georgia’s local and state governments having to weather anger and criticism.

Atlanta’s mayor, Kasim Reed, says the city only had about 10 pieces of equipment to clear icy roads, when it needed 40 to 60. He promised residents that the city will be prepared for worst-case snowstorm scenarios in the future, with equipment operators on standby before the first snowflake falls, as reported by CBS Atlanta.

What happened in Atlanta shows that snow and ice can cripple local economies almost anywhere. In an era of tight city, county and state budgets, some authorities are gambling their communities’ economic health and national reputation by not having enough equipment, workers and road salt.

“Salt is an important strategic resource for winter,” says Lori Roman, president of the Salt Institute, which represents the salt industry. “Nothing else takes care of ice like salt. That’s a fact.”

Ice closes roads, and a 2010 study by IHS Global Insight, a Boston-based economics consulting firm, found that hundreds of millions of dollars in economic opportunity are lost each day that a state is shuttered by impassable roads.

“The shocking losses estimated by this study should light a fire under state and local authorities nationwide to get serious about investing in quicker and more effective snow and ice removal,” says Greg Cohen , president of the American Highway Users Alliance, which commissioned the study. “When roads are left unsafe or impassible, it is more than a public safety issue – it’s like money being thrown down the drain.”

The study examined the economic impact of snowstorms in 16 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. It showed:

* A one-day major snowstorm can cost a state $300 to $700 million in both direct and indirect costs.

* Although states and localities may be hesitant to expend significant upfront resources in the short-term, the long-term payoff more than justifies the expense.

* Among all economic classes, snow-related shutdowns harm hourly workers the worst, accounting for almost two-thirds of direct economic losses.

“The bottom line is that the economic impact of snow-related closures far exceeds the cost of timely deicing and snow removal,” says Roman. “As our public officials focus on economic recovery, we can ill afford preventable road shutdowns that cause such immediate harm to working class families trying to make ends meet.”