Economy

California’s liberal policies are creating a one-party state — by subtraction, not addition

The San Francisco Business Times featured a series of articles in mid-October chronicling the “Bay Area exodus” as California’s high housing costs, congestion, the nation’s highest marginal income tax rate, and heavy regulatory burden act to push out all but high-end tech companies. The business journal assembled a handy list of 31 San Francisco-region companies...

October 22, 2018

Criminal Justice

Why Halloween is especially scary in some Virginia cities

Katie Greer is communications manager for the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Right on Crime initiative. Fall: That time of year when Americans race down the aisles to snag all things pumpkin and hunt for perfect Halloween costumes. It’s also that time of year when criminal-justice policy experts poke fun at Chesapeake, Va., for trying to...

October 19, 2018

Economy

The Trump Manufacturing Jobs Boom: 10 Times Obama’s Over 21 Months

The Great Recession officially ended in June 2009, six months into former President Obama’s first term. The economy continued to shed jobs until the following March. Manufacturing was particularly hard hit, with almost 2.3 million manufacturing jobs—some 1 in 6—lost between January 2008 and March 2010. As is the case during recoveries, jobs bounced back,...

October 18, 2018

Criminal Justice

In the Trenches of Reentry

Over the 25 years of my work with incarcerated individuals and their families, I have had the great pleasure and honor to run into a number of what I call “reentry warriors.” These people were the early champions of improving reentry for those leaving prison long before reentry became the darling of policies and politics...

October 16, 2018

K-12 Education

Raises aren’t the most effective way to attract, keep the best teachers

The Ector County school district is asking voters for a raise. District officials have called a Tax Ratification Election (TRE) for Nov. 6, which would mean a 13 cents (per $100 in property valuation) tax hike for district homeowners and businesses. Ector County will be taxing its citizens the maximum maintenance and operation tax allowed...

October 15, 2018

K-12 Education

Dallas ISD wants more money, but do schools really need it?

Dallas ISD wants more money, and it’s going to the taxpayers in November to request a tax hike. A tax ratification election on the ballot would authorize a tax rate increase. Other Texas districts, including Frisco, Richardson and Duncanville, will hold TREs on Nov. 6. Great! Taxpayers should have a say in what their taxes will...

October 15, 2018

Economy

Trump’s Economy Is Creating Factory Jobs 10 Times Faster Than Obama’s

On June 1, 2016 at a town hall sponsored by PBS, Eric Cottonham, a steel workers’ union member from Indiana, asked President Barack Obama about manufacturing jobs creation, saying, “All of our jobs have left, or are in the process of leaving.”01:07 In response, Obama noted that some jobs have gone overseas and that “I’ve been trying...

October 12, 2018

Criminal Justice

The untimely death of due process

Since the founding of our great nation and the development of our Constitution and Bill of Rights, Americans have been protected by due process.  The purpose of due process is to ensure fairness in all legal matters, both civil and criminal, and to prevent prejudicial or unequal treatment in the justice system. Essentially, due process...

October 11, 2018

Criminal Justice

Criminal Justice Reform with Microsoft

On October 5th, The Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) and its Right on Crime initiative hosted an event on criminal justice reform at the Microsoft Innovation and Policy Center in Washington, DC. Marc Levin, vice president of criminal justice policy at TPPF, moderated the first of two panels which explored the role of technology in...

October 10, 2018

Health Care

Why Did I Get the Wrong Rx?

A recent memo from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) clarifies why many Americans aren’t getting the medications they need. The wrong person is choosing your prescription drug, and it isn’t your doctor. According to CMS, starting in 2020, Medicare Part D health plans can implement “indication-based drug therapy.” Medically, an indication is pain in a...

October 5, 2018

Economy

California is a Failed Model No Matter How You Look At It

When you have to begin an argument with “depending on how you look at it,” you’re not arguing from a strong position. Yet such has become the answer to the question of, “Is California a good role model?” posed recently in The New York Times. Even its defenders say California’s prosperity is relative. The good news...

October 5, 2018

Economy

Odd but important: Ted Cruz and Beto O’Rourke had a debate about U-Hauls

In his first debate with Rep. Beto O’Rourke, a Democrat from El Paso, Sen. Ted Cruz promoted Texas’ low taxes and light regulations as essential to job creation, citing as evidence, “The cost of a one-way U-Haul from California to Texas is more than 300 percent the cost the other way around.” Why mention U-Haul at...

October 5, 2018