Announcements

• The Badger Institute announced partnerships with several leading research organizations and subject matter experts who will contribute to its Mandate for Madison, a policy roadmap for the governor and Legislature that will be released throughout 2022 and early 2023.
• The Buckeye Institute is moving quickly in its case representing Eric Flannery against the District of Columbia’s unjust closure of Eric’s restaurant, The Big Board. Buckeye has already sent a demand letter to D.C.’s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs insisting that the suspension of Eric’s operating license be reversed and has filed a motion with the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board demanding that the board immediately lift the summary license suspension of The Big Board’s liquor license.
• The Freedom Foundation and the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation jointly filed a federal class-action lawsuit in Cincinnati, Ohio, on behalf of city employee Margaret Lascano, who terminated her membership and dues payments in AFSCME Council 8 last July but continues to involuntarily support the union’s activities through the mandatory confiscation of her accrued vacation time.
• Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation poll released a new poll that finds Governor Kim Reynolds is very popular and Iowans strongly support the idea of a 4% flat tax. Additionally, a plurality of Iowans support United States military involvement in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
• The Mackinac Center for Public Policy hired Ryan Rickel as its director of strategic partnerships and promoted Taylor Piotrowski to outreach manager.
• The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, in partnership with the Texas Public Policy Foundation, will be launching a ‘Right on Healthcare’ policy initiative in Wisconsin. Right on Healthcare will offer Wisconsin policymakers new and innovative policy ideas that ensure Wisconsin has a healthcare system that prioritizes the needs of patients through competition, innovation, and expanded access.

Success Stories 

• The Iowa legislature passed a historic tax relief bill. It lowers the individual income tax to a flat 3.9 percent rate by 2026. It also includes a gradual reduction of the corporate tax rate from 9.8 percent to a flat 5.5 percent, while reforming business tax credits. In addition, it eliminates state taxes on retirement income. Throughout a multi-year effort, ITR Foundation has been centrally involved in a process that has transformed Iowa’s tax code from one of the nation’s worst to one of its most competitive.  The Foundation has relentlessly supported tax reform through op-eds across the state, sharing tax policy research with elected officials, public opinion polling, and promotion across various digital and traditional means of communications.
• The Michigan Senate adopted a bill that asserts “the fundamental rights of parents to direct their children’s education.” The Mackinac Center noted parents have the fundamental right and responsibility to direct their children’s education, and students benefit greatly when schools treat parents as trusted partners.
• The Michigan Legislature passed a bill that cuts the income tax and another bill that pays down pension debt. The Mackinac Center said it’s good to see that lawmakers have made it a priority to lower taxes and pay down pension debts.
• The Oklahoma Senate advanced an occupational licensing measure that makes it easier for people with a criminal history to get jobs.
• After thirty-two months of litigation and negotiation, the Rio Grande Foundation announced the settlement of the lawsuit related to Bernalillo County’s lack of transparency and openness. 
• The Nebraska Legislature is considering a bill that would modernize the state’s tax code. The Platte Institute testified in support of the bill.

Solutions from the states: This week’s policy briefs

Critical Social Justice in Maine Higher Education
A new report by Maine Policy Institute poses the following question: How far has the critical social justice agenda advanced across the University of Maine System?

Why Pennsylvania Needs Wisconsin-Style Government Union Reform
A new Commonwealth Foundation report examines the impact Wisconsin’s Act 10 has had on balancing budgets, stimulating the economy, and enacting school choice legislation. Passed in 2011, Act 10 has reined in public union special privileges and restored workers’ rights while saving Wisconsin taxpayers billions of dollars.

Opportunity Unleashed
A new analysis by the Commonwealth Foundation finds a record number of Pennsylvania families seek tax credit scholarships.

Bold Reforms For A Post-Pandemic Oklahoma
In the aftermath of the pandemic, Oklahoma’s policymakers should put parents in charge of education with a universal Education Savings Account, eliminate the personal income tax, and reform our state’s dysfunctional regulatory system—according to the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs.

Policy News From The States

Checking in on Legislative Sessions

Bill to Ban Direct Vehicle Sales Is Anti-Consumer Choice
Mississippi Center for Public Policy

Education

A Better Route to Give Parents Successful School Choice
Alaska Policy Forum

The Wild West at MPS 
Badger Institute

Kentucky Supreme Court fast-tracks school choice lawsuit 
Bluegrass Institute

Less in-person instruction linked to greater learning loss 
Center of the American Experiment

“As teachers, we were teaching to the test” 
Empower Mississippi

New Research: School Students Lag Behind In Literacy Almost Two Years Into The Covid-19 Pandemic
Georgia Center for Opportunity

Education Rally: Access to More High-Quality Education Options
Georgia Center for Opportunity

Why Weren’t Schools Prepared for COVID?
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Let’s Give Our Children Hope
Pacific Research Institute

Parents Demand More Rights in Education, More Options for Children
Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty

Polling Finds Strong Support To Expand School Choice In Wisconsin 
Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty

Energy And Environment

Energy Explainer – Why Energy Prices are Skyrocketing
Empire Center for Public Policy

It’s time to get proactive about forest management
Frontier Institute

New Grid Operator Study Highlights the Need for More Transmission
Show-Me Institute

Government Accountability

The Buckeye Institute Calls on 6th Circuit to Protect Nashvillians from Government Extortion 
The Buckeye Institute

Metro’s Playing Farmville with Taxpayer Money
Cascade Policy Institute

Healthcare

Eliminating the pharmacy technician ratio
Frontier Institute

Olympic-Scale Doctor Shortage: Tapping International Talent
Pioneer Institute

Telemedicine Needs Legislative Action 
Show-Me Institute

Single-Payer Health Care Fails in California, Look to Texas
Texas Public Policy Foundation

Housing Affordability

Testimony: Rural zoning change would help ease housing shortage
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii

Testimony: HB1751 HD2 a creative way to increase Hawaii housing
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii

Housing is having a moment 
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy

Inflation

Inflation in One Page 
John Locke Foundation

Jobs And State Economies

Rebuilding Alaska’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund
Alaska Policy Forum

Minnesota ranks poorly on new business creation, reducing taxes could change that
Center of the American Experiment

Minnesota needs to reduce its regulatory burden
Center of the American Experiment

Home-based business provides new career for entrepreneur
Empower Mississippi

State Employment and Training Programs are well funded – they just need participants
Foundation for Government Authority

Montana Red Tape Snapshot: January 2022
Frontier Institute

Guaranteed Basic Income not a Guaranteed Solution to Poverty
Georgia Public Policy Foundation

What’s Causing Kansas Inflation?
Kansas Policy Institute

Elderly people shouldn’t become homeless because of property taxes
Libertas Institute

The Script Doesn’t Change: Hollywood Welfare Still Bad For Michigan
Mackinac Center for Public Policy

Bold Reforms For A Post-pandemic Oklahoma 
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Nebraskanomics: Sen. Anna Wishart On Regulatory Sandboxes 
Platte Institute

State Budgets And Spending

A Tax Reform Path to Prosperity in Wisconsin 
Badger Institute

Twelve out of fifteen largest California cities don’t have money to pay their bills according to accounting study
California Policy Center

A real budget can bring prosperity to Pennsylvania
Commonwealth Foundation

Yes, we can afford to eliminate the income tax
Empower Mississippi

States should refuse the Feds’ ‘Free Money’ that’s creating huge, costly Medicaid rolls
Foundation for Government Authority

Tax Cuts are Happening Everywhere. What about New Jersey?
Garden State Initiative

Tax Rates Matter
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation

We Are Owed a Promised Tax Cut…and They Work
Mackinac Center for Public Policy

Corporate Welfare Proposal is a Bad Deal for Taxpayers 
Mackinac Center for Public Policy

Breaking down Gov. Mills’ supplemental budget
Maine Policy Institute

What Do Project Price Hikes Say About How Federal Infrastructure Dollars Will Be Spent?
Pacific Research Institute

4 Smart Ways Blueprint Nebraska Fixes Our Tax System
Platte Institute

Taxed Out of House and Home: Houston and Harris County 
Texas Public Policy Foundation

Workplace Freedom

Why Pennsylvania Needs Wisconsin-Style Government Union Reform
Commonwealth Foundation

Other

Millions of Ineligible Medicaid Enrollees Coms at a High Cost to States
Foundation for Government Authority

Frederick Douglass, a Former Slave, Extolled the Virtues of American Citizenship 
Goldwater Institute

Two New Conventions of States Discovered! 
Independence Institute

Crafting Laws vs. Making Rules
John Locke Foundation

China Bill’ Will Make America More Dependent, Not Less
Texas Public Policy Foundation

A New Approach to Reducing Poverty 
Texas Public Policy Foundation

Think Tanks In The News

Alaska Students Must Learn To “Read By Nine” Now — Not In Nine Years
Alaska Policy Forum in the Alaska Journal of Commerce

In Need Of A Better Promise
Georgia Public Policy in The Northeast Georgian

How Does US Health Care Really Compare to Other Countries?
Washington Policy Center in RealClearPolicy

Illinois Teachers Unions Fight To Keep Kids Masked
Illinois Policy Institute in the Madison St. Clair Record

Whitmer Budget Unfriendly To State’s Charter Schools
Mackinac Center for Public Policy in The Mining Journal

Why The Biden Admin’s Plan To Unionize The National Guard Is A Horrible Idea
Texas Public Policy Foundation in The Federalist

The Future of Agriculture Report
Ethan Allen Institute in Vermont Biz

States Should Refuse The Feds’ ‘Free Money’ That’s Creating Huge, Costly Medicaid Rolls
Foundation for Government Accountability in the New York Post

The Kind Of Education Change Georgia Needs
Georgia Public Policy Foundation in the Dalton Daily Citizen

Illinois’ Big Gap: Black Workers Worse Off Than Peers
Illinois Policy Institute in Crain Chicago’s Business

State Must Prioritize Refilling Unemployment Fund Or Saddle Businesses With Tax Hikes 
Illinois Policy in the Daily Herald

Elderly People Shouldn’t Become Homeless Because Of Property Taxes
Libertas Institute in the Deseret News

COVID-19 Tests Come Too Late
Pacific Research Institute in the Washington Examiner

Stalled in D.C., the Single-Payer Fantasy Makes Its Way to Blue States
Pacific Research Institute in National Review

Well-Designed Rainy Day Policy An Umbrella For Reserve Funds
Bluegrass Institute in the Richmond Register

Michigan’s Governor Blocks More Trade Than The Truckers Did
Mackinac Center for Public Policy in The Hill

Why Lockdowns Are Dead
Mackinac Center for Public Policy in RealClearPolicy

Medicaid Burns Money, Democrats Fiddle Fanning the Flames
Pacific Research Institute in Newsmax

Events and Opportunities

Please see SPN’s Network Calendar for a full list of events.