In the [Louisiana] Legislature’s last session, House Bill 249 passed that allows judges to waive or provide alternatives to some fines and fees if payment would cause financial hardship. This bill prevents taxpayers from footing the cost of jailing people simply because they couldn’t pay. After negotiations this year, that bill likely won’t be implemented...
As an economic engine for the country, Texas attracts not only businesses and migrants, but also visitors from everywhere. In 2016, Texas welcomed 266 million visitors who generated more than $69 billion in direct travel spending. Many visitors come to enjoy the state’s pristine landscapes, historical landmarks, delicious food and vibrant music scene. Visitors also...
California Democrats have drafted a bill to bar Internet service providers (ISPs) such as Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon from playing favorites with online content. Mirroring the 2015 net neutrality rule enacted under President Obama’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC), SB 822 was introduced in January, passed through three committees on strict party line votes with the unanimous support...
Just how bad is the state of free speech and debate on America’s campuses? In March 2018, Gallup/Knight looked to answer this question through conducting a survey of more than 3,000 college students. The results are frightening: The survey reveals that 61 percent of American college students find that their school prevents some students and faculty from...
According to a new U.S. Census Bureau report, of the 15 fastest-growing cities larger than 50,000 people, seven are in Texas including the top three: Frisco, New Braunfels, and Pflugerville. Frisco’s growth rate was 8.2 percent, some 11 times faster than the national rate of 0.7 percent. Of the cities with the greatest population gain from July 1,...
On Tuesday, the vast majority of U.S. House members put families and communities ahead of political gain and passed the FIRST STEP Act. This criminal justice reform bill, if passed by the Senate, will change lives by offering inmates a second chance, and provide the kind of transformative programs that will help keep them out of...
Last year, in these pages, I reported that, on January 13, 2017 (just one week before the Obama administration exited DC), the Obama Department of Education released a memorandum confessing that it had “overstated student loan repayment rates at most colleges and trade schools.” The “updated numbers” provided by the Department were analyzed by the Wall Street...
California’s bigger, population-wise, but Texas delivers the growth. California, with 39.5 million people, is some 40 percent more populous than Texas, at 28.3 million. Yet, in spite of California’s large advantage in residents, the Golden State generated 356,800 new nonfarm jobs in the past 12 months through April, a rate of 2.1 percent, compared to...
Question: How fast can things go from good to bad for a Texas pension plan? Answer: Fairly quickly. Less than 20 years ago, the City of Austin Employees’ Retirement System (COAERS) was actually overfunded, according to a new TPPF report Evaluating Solutions for Austin’s Billion Dollar Pension Crisis. Today, the fund is nowhere near as...
New York City is the latest to square off against its own people over how people use their own homes and apartments. The New York City Council is drafting legislation that would require those who participate in the booming short-term rental industry to register their addresses, which is surely a harbinger of further regulations to...
When speaking about the different ways to spend money, famed free-market economist Milton Friedman had this to say: “There are four ways in which you can spend money. You can spend your own money on yourself. When you do that, why then you really watch out what you’re doing, and you try to get the...
One of the most successful policy achievements of the Trump administration and the 115th Congress has been rolling back excessive federal regulations. The synergy between the executive and legislative branches has helped stymie a veritable wave of onerous and dubious regulatory actions that would have negatively affected businesses, taxpayers, families, and individuals just trying to make...