Perhaps the largest hurdle facing Lynch in her upcoming Senate confirmation hearings is her affinity for seizing real and financial assets to be put to use in her office... The Wall Street Journal reported that Lynch's office made $904 million dollars in criminal and civil asset seizures in fiscal year 2013.
A study led by the prominent economist Arthur Laffer recommends raising the total sales tax rate, which includes the state and local portions totaling 8.25 percent, to 11 percent. This plan would also broaden the tax base by taxing property and all goods and services taxed in at least one other state.
Americans generally dislike paying taxes, and this sentiment is especially true when it comes to property taxes. According to a study produced by the American Enterprise Institute, of all taxes imposed on the general public, property taxes are the form for which citizens hold the highest degree of indignation. The public’s ill-will is not without merit, according...
Attempting to keep pace with these price hikes, students and their parents have amassed historic debt, which now stands at $1.2 trillion. For the first time, national student-loan debt is higher than national credit-card debt.
In fact, Texas is now spending $10,549 per student every year, which means we're spending upwards of $250,000 on the average classroom. (Teacher pay, by the way, averages $48,821.)
There they go again. In what has become a familiar refrain, proponents of making big government even bigger are claiming that past increases in Texas state spending aren’t really as bad as they seem if you make an adjustment here and there. In this case, we are told that “Texas’ practice” for the last decade...
There are now so many federal criminal statutes, and prosecutors can so broadly interpreted them, that anybody can be accused of anything at any time. Like losing fish.
Onerous new ridesharing regulations are set to go into effect tomorrow in the City of Houston that will make services like Uber and Lyft more expensive for the average consumer and create additional costs for local taxpayers. Among other things, the new rules will require drivers of transportation network companies (TNCs) to undergo additional background...
Within this country’s most populous, developed cities, a disturbing trend is emerging as middle class families are being forced out due to the struggle of income inequality and affordable housing. According to a study produced by residential real estate magnet, Trulia, among the United States’ 100 largest metros, nearly 63 percent of homes can be categorized as...
Last month, the Texas Public Policy Foundation published a short study on the city of Denton’s proposed fracking ban that explores the ramifications a fracking ban would have on the economy, taxes, and property rights. With the issue close to being decided, it’s worth rehashing the crux of this analysis once more. From the study:...
No American ought to suffer the slings and arrows of a punishing property tax system to pay for our government. Not only is a break from the status quo possible, but it’s also potentially prosperous for all Texans in a big way.
Earlier today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released new labor force and unemployment data for major metropolitan areas around the U.S., and the figures offer a revealing look at which labor markets in Texas are booming. According to the BLS, the ten metropolitan areas in Texas with the lowest unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) for September 2014 included: Midland (2.6%); Odessa (3.1%); Amarillo (3.6%); Lubbock (3.8%); College Station – Bryan (3.9%); San Angelo (3.9%); Abilene (4.0%); Victoria (4.0%); Austin – Round Rock – San Marcos (4.2%); and Longview (4.4%). The statewide average (not seasonally adjusted) for the same period was 5.0%. In terms of the sheer number of jobs added, the Houston – Sugar Land – Baytown experienced the second largest year-over-year employment increase nationally with 119,400 net new jobs added. This was second only to the New York – Northern New Jersey – Long Island area (+130,500), according to the BLS. The impressive new jobs data should offer jobseekers much encouragement about the state of the economy and the direction of the state overall.