The Connecticut-based Yankee Institute has launched Raising Hale, a new source of investigative reporting for The Constitution State. The Raising Hale website features articles and videos that break state and local news and address topics not covered elsewhere. Current headlines include: "Nine stimulus grant recipients fail to report on spending $4.4 million" and "State balances budget with tuition dollars."

A key reason many conservative Democrats were convinced to vote for the health care overhaul legislation was because the president and other leaders said it would reduce the deficit and put the U.S. on a path to long-term entitlement reform. "Instead of solving our entitlement crisis, it makes matters worse," Capretta has said. Entitlement spending growth will accelerate, and it'll be exacerbated as more than 70 million baby boomers hit age 65.

On July 18 the Tennessean profiled TCPR's acting executive director Justin Owen as a "Nashville Rising Star." Prior to joining TCPR, Owen served as a law clerk to the U.S. Attorney in Memphis and at the Pentagon as a legal intern to the General Counsel of the United States Navy. He is also a 2007 SPN / IHS Charles G. Koch Summer Fellow. The profile also highlighted the Tennessee Center's 2010 Pork Report, co-published with Citizens Against Government Waste.

Mark your calendar! NDPC's 3rd Annual Free Market Forum on Sept. 11 in Fargo will feature former Congressmen Barry Goldwater, Jr. and New York Times bestselling author Dr. Thomas Woods. Students can attend this year's Free Market Forum at no charge. With the Obama Administration bent on further eroding state sovereignty, this is a timely event; topics to be covered include the states' rights and nullification.

New Jersey is considering a tax reform called "Cap 2.5," under which a municipality's tax levy on existing property could not grow more than 2.5 percent in any year, unless voters allow it. This cap is similar to Massachusetts's Proposition 2.5. Massachusetts's experience suggests that New Jersey, by adopting a similar cap, could significantly restrain tax growth without hurting educational outcomes.

July 31, 2010 would've been Milton Friedman's 98th birthday. To honor his vision and the impact he has had on our society, the Foundation is collaborating with policy groups around the world to hold events in his name. The link above provides details on the celebrations, to date, that will take place in five countries, 44 states and the District of Columbia. To learn more, or to apply to host an event, write keri@edchoice.org or call 317-681-0745.

With approximately 6.6 percent of Hawaii's labor force unemployed, the legislature needs to revise the state's complex certification system to make it easier for people to change professions and get back to work. One possible revision: eliminate the government's monopoly and open the certification process to competition. By allowing private organizations to compete with government, an array of new certification options would arise.

In early June the California State Crime Lab Task Force voted to shut itself down. Shutting down government bodies is practically impossible, even if their usefulness and accountability are questionable. This unusual action sets a good example for other state entities, and for legislators looking to trim state government.

A state sales tax expansion, proposed by Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, may result in the loss of 30,000 Michigan jobs and may decrease wages by $1,400 per person, according to Mackinac estimate. With 13 percent unemployment and a decade of state GDP contraction, the Legislature should be cutting taxes and spending to encourage economic growth.