Announcements

• The Badger Institute welcomed a healthcare expert and an economist to its Visiting Fellows Program: Dan Sem, Director of the Rx Think Tank at Concordia University Wisconsin, and Scott Niederjohn, economist and director of the Free Enterprise Center at Concordia, will provide research on ways to control costs and increase transparency in healthcare.
• The Buckeye Institute filed its appeal in Schaad v. Alder with the Ohio Supreme Court asking the court to hear the case and recognize Ohio’s emergency-based local income tax system—where the state forced people to work from home during the pandemic, but deemed their work to have been performed in higher-taxed office locations—as unconstitutional. 
• Center of the American Experiment announced it will host a Tax Rally on the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol on Saturday, April 23. The rally will allow Minnesotans to gather in St. Paul to pressure Gov. Tim Walz and the legislature to return the record $9.3 billion budget surplus to the people in the form of permanent tax cuts. 
• Empower Mississippi released a video explaining Mississippi’s tax reform changes.

This Week on SPN.org

Mississippi Passes Historic Tax Cut To Help Workers And Their Families

Success Stories 

• The Alabama Legislature introduced a bill that eliminates the burdensome certificate-of-need (CON) program. The Alabama Policy Institute encouraged lawmakers to repeal the program and noted many states have abolished their programs in light of evidence that such measures do not decrease healthcare costs. 
• The Kentucky Legislature approved a historic Rainy-Day Fund as part of the commonwealth’s new $32 billion two-year budget, which takes effect on July 1. The Bluegrass Institute commended lawmakers for their leadership in laying a solid foundation upon which to build a stronger fiscal future for Kentucky.
• The Kentucky Senate passed legislation that provides funding for public charter schools. The Bluegrass Institute thanked lawmakers for advancing this bill and noted public charter schools are giving millions of American children the opportunity for an education that meets their needs and offer them a brighter future.
• The Pennsylvania House Education Committee approved a bill to offer Lifeline Scholarships to students in underperforming school districts. The Commonwealth Foundation explained the legislation would offer a scholarship to any public school student in the bottom 15 percent of lowest-performing schools. Commonwealth added Lifeline Scholarships give low-income students trapped in the lowest-performance schools access to better educational opportunities.
• Empower Mississippi and the Mississippi Center for Public Policy celebrated the passage of the largest tax cut in state history this week. The new law will eliminate the 4% tax bracket, which is the first $10,000 of taxable income, and will reduce the top rate to a flat 4%, giving Mississippi a much more competitive income tax rate. 
• The Mississippi Legislature is considering a bill that guarantees that public school students may engage in political activities or political or philosophical expressions before, during, or after the school day in the same manner and extent that nonpolitical activities may take place. Empower Mississippi noted it’s a good thing when we are exposed to multiple points of view. And this bill will ensure that freedom is honored and not restricted by your local school.
• The Kansas Policy Institute highlighted how residents and businesses in 21 Kansas counties will pay less in property tax this year, thanks to the transparency aspect of last year’s Truth in Taxation Act.
• The Independence Institute filed a citizens initiative to expand the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) to permit parental access to teaching materials used in their kids’ classrooms. 
• The South Carolina Senate passed an Education Savings Account (ESA) bill.

Solutions from the states: This week’s policy briefs

DE Schools Look Bad Vs. Other States:  SAT Testing Needs To Be Optional
In a new analysis, the Caesar Rodney Institute urges Delaware Governor and legislators to change the law mandating 100% participation in the SAT so only those interested in attending college take the test.

The Costs of Occupational Licensing in Tennessee & Avenues for Reform
A new report by the Beacon Center of Tennessee attempts to offer a way to reduce the high cost of occupational licensing and allow the vulnerable groups affected to live a fulfilling life.

The Path to a National Privacy Framework
A new report by Citizens Against Government Waste examines the problems with a hodgepodge approach to data privacy among the states and details how it is more critical than ever for Congress to devise a national framework for consumer data privacy that is flexible enough to meet the needs of consumers, provides certainty for businesses, and can be adapted for new innovations.

The “Bidenflation” Crisis: How Expanded Welfare Benefits And Labor Shortages Are Driving Up Prices
A Foundation for Government Accountability report reveals that inflation caused by excessive government spending and ongoing labor shortages is hitting low- and middle-income Americans the hardest, with the inflation rate reaching 7.1 percent in 2021—a 40-year high.

Earning Full Credit: A Toolkit for Designing Tax-Credit Scholarship Policies (2022 Edition)
Education tax credits grew increasingly popular in 2021, with four more states enacting programs.  There are now 28 tax-credit scholarship (TCS) programs in 23 states, and they serve more than 325,000 students, according to a new study published by Pioneer Institute.

Policy News from the States

Checking in on Legislative Sessions

Do The Priorities Of The Legislature Match Those Of The People?
Alabama Policy Institute

Tennessee Set to Wow with DAOs
Beacon Center of Tennessee

10 Things You Need To Know About MN Politics And The Legislature
Center of the American Experiment

Best of Utah’s 2022 Legislative Session
Libertas Institute

Governor, Senate Leader: School-Choice Effort Will Continue
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Criminal Justice Reform

New Prison Work Initiative Could Be Coming To Mississippi
Empower Mississippi

Mississippi Considers Easing Restrictions On Employees
Empower Mississippi

Education

Parents Didn’t Start The Fire
Badger Institute

It’s Deja Vu All Over Again When It Comes To Teachers Union Strikes
California Policy Center

Resource Reminds Parents Of Their Right To Review Curriculum
Center of the American Experiment

Sunshine States Bringing Light to School Curricula
Goldwater Institute

Bullied Students Find Better Education Thanks To Illinois’ School Choice Program
Illinois Policy Institute

Education Innovation: Good for Students, Good for Teachers
Libertas Institute

Michigan Needs to Modernize K-12 Funding
Mackinac Center

Children’s Best Advocates Like School Choice
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Private-School Choice Increases Educational Attainment
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Government Accountability

People Want to Give us Gifts
Caesar Rodney Institute

Sacramento City Unified Teacher Salary Analysis
California Policy Center

Healthcare

Hospital Staffing Crisis Shows Why Minnesota Must Join The National Nurse Licensure Compact
Center of the American Experiment

Inflation

Adjusted For Inflation, Wages Have Fallen Every Month Since April 2021
Center of the American Experiment

A Very Short Primer on What Causes Inflation
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation

The Biden Administration Is Ignoring How Its Policies Will Worsen Inflation. Again.
Maine Policy Institute’s Maine Wire

Jobs And State Economies

Are Taxes Driving People Out of Portland?
Cascade Policy Institute

Twin Cities Lost 15,462 Residents To Other Parts Of America In 2021
Center of the American Experiment

How Legislators Can Help Get Minnesotans Back Into The Workforce
Center of the American Experiment

It’s not Just a Stadium Subsidy
Empire Center for Public Policy

At key post-Covid milestone, NY still posted nation’s largest job loss (by far)
Empire Center for Public Policy

Pritzker Ranks 4th-Worst Governor For Economic Freedom
Illinois Policy Institute

Illinois’ Leisure, Hospitality Industry Suffering 3rd-Worst Recovery In U.S.
Illinois Policy Institute

Illinois Adds 19,600 Jobs In February, Still Missing 178,300 Jobs From Pandemic
Illinois Policy Institute

Lightfoot Floats Waiving Chicago’s Gas Tax Until 2023
Illinois Policy Institute

81 Of 102 Illinois Counties Lose Population In 2021
Illinois Policy Institute

February Jobs Report
John Locke Foundation

Location Really Does Matter
John Locke Foundation

Should N.H. Pay People To Move Here?
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy

United Van Lines: Kansas Is A High Outbound State
Kansas Policy Institute

Maine’s Employment Outlook Largely Unchanged In February
Maine Policy Institute

Who Will Benefit from the Great Gas Tax Rebate Debate of 2022?
Pacific Research Institute

The Right To Earn A Living Act Will Reignite The American Dream For Louisianans
Pelican Institute for Public Policy

The Next Wave Of Innovation Starts In Sandboxes
Pelican Institute for Public Policy

Hail to the Chiefs! And Pay for Your Own Stadium
Show-Me Institute

State Budgets and Spending

Governor’s Budget Offers No Relief For Renters
Garden State Initiative

In 2020, Minnesota Ranked 5th Highest In State Tax Collections Per Person
Center of the American Experiment

Iowans Are Tightening Their Belts; Local Governments Should Too
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation

“I’m A Capitalist, But …”: Fiscal Takeaways From The President’s FY23 Budget Proposal
John Locke Foundation

Latest Spending Bill Reflects Mackinac Coalition Guidance
Mackinac Center

Guest Blog: Louisville Needs Tax Modernization Now
Pegasus Institute

Workplace Freedom

SEIU Job Post Says Thanks To Them, PA Governor And Supreme Court Are Pro-Union
Americans for Fair Treatment

Questioning The Political Priorities Of The Firefighters Union
California Policy Center

Other

‘Shipping Security’ More Jones Act Shibai
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii

Just What Is the President’s Role in Current Gasoline Prices?
Mackinac Center for Public Policy

What’s Up With Gas Prices?
Texas Public Policy Foundation

Think Tanks in the News

A Look at Judge Jackson’s Record on Unions
Americans for Fair Treatment on the Daily Signal Podcast

Gambling with Teacher’s Livelihoods
Americans for Fair Treatment on Justice & Drew

Costs Of Occupational Licensing Fall Heaviest On Vulnerable Tennesseans
Beacon Center of Tennessee in The Center Square

FARM Act Would Halt Subsidies For Sacrificing Farmland To The ‘Green Energy’ Industry
Center of the American Experiment in the Washington Examiner

Wisconsin’s Zuckerbucks Report: A Call to Action on Election Integrity
Foundation for Government Accountability at RealClearPolicy

How Mississippi Flipped the Script on the Labor Shortage
Foundation for Government Accountability at RealClearPolicy

Emails Reveal Biden Allowing Teachers’ Unions to Write CDC Policy
Freedom Foundation at RedState

Clock Is Ticking On Georgia Tax Reform
Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s Kyle Wingfield Column

The Sky Is Not Falling: Iowa’s Tax Reform Was The Right Decision
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation in The Gazette

Conservatives See Freedom as Progress
John Locke Foundation’s John Hood Column

State Tax Plan is Good But Not Great
Mississippi Center for Public Policy in The Northside Sun

Progressive America Is Losing Out To Conservative States
Mississippi Center for Public Policy in the Sunday Telegraph

Battle For School Choice Must Continue
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs in The Journal Record

Under Government Health Care, The Doctor Won’t See You Now
Pacific Research Institute at Forbes

The Myth Of Our Coming National Divorce
State Policy Network at the Spectator

America Shouldn’t Go To War For Ukraine, But It Should Sell Ukraine Weapons
Texas Public Policy Foundation at The Federalist

Bitcoin Won’t Help Russia Bypass World Sanctions
The James Madison Institute at Reason

Gov. Youngkin’s Tax Plan Can Lift Us Out Of Recession
Thomas Jefferson Institute in the Culpeper Star-Exponent 

Political Push For Electric Vehicles Might Not Make Sense, Or Cents
Washington Policy Institute in The Spokesman-Review

Events and Opportunities

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