July 26, 2024
Week in Review: July 26, 2024
Freedom Foundation hosted its second annual Teacher Freedom Summit which brought together hundreds of public school teachers from across the nation for a crash course in revitalizing American education by ensuring union accountability.
James Madison Institute announced that it will be hosting an exclusive showing of Undivide US, a revolutionary film that challenges the oft-reported idea that America is hopelessly divided.
John Locke Foundation announced that it would be holding a rally urging the legislature to keep their promise to clear the 55,000 students in need of an Opportunity Scholarship who are currently on the waitlist. Locke also announced that Bryce Fiedler has been appointed the founding director of the Carolinas Academic Leadership Network.
Mountain States Policy Center released a new report, Answering the legal questions on expanding education choice, which highlights how education choice is constitutional in most states.
Pacific Research Institute’s Lance Izumi released his latest book, called The Great Classroom Collapse, which investigates the implosion of rigor and learning in America’s schools. He shares the stories of some of the parents, teachers, and policymakers he profiles in the book and discusses what can be done to improve classroom learning and give all students a greater opportunity for a successful future. In addition, the Institute announced that it will be hosting a webinar on August 1 on the Grants Pass decision on homelessness.
South Carolina Policy Council released a report that makes the case for a constitutional amendment to bolster voter-eligibility criteria.
The Buckeye Institute filed an amicus brief in Alabama v. California, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to tell California and four other states that they cannot abuse America’s courts to impose their extreme energy policies on the nation. In Darling v. AFSCME, Buckeye also called on the Ohio Supreme Court to make it clear to Ohio’s lower courts that they—not the State Employment Relations Board—have jurisdiction in cases where public employees, like Buckeye’s five clients, have money illegally taken out of their paychecks by their employers and given to a government union. In its amicus brief in Bristol Myers Squibb v. Becerra and Janssen Pharmaceuticals v. Becerra, Buckeyealso demonstrated how the Biden Administration’s government-imposed price controls— included in the Inflation Reduction Act—fail Economics 101, will fail to curb inflation, and violate the U.S. Constitution.
California Policy Center filed an amicus curiae brief in support of the First Amendment rights of a California first-grader who was punished by her school after she drew a picture containing the words “Black Lives Mater [sic]… any life.” The school principal disciplined the student by depriving her of recess for two weeks and prohibiting her from drawing.
Freedom Foundation filed another US Supreme Court petition, Bourque v. Engineers and Architects Association, presenting the justices with a perfect opportunity to reinforce the landmark decision in Janus v. AFSCME.
Goldwater Institute filed a brief supporting property owners in Salt Lake City, Utah, whose land lies adjacent to city-owned property where the government has allowed the homeless to live indefinitely, in violation of existing laws. These owners have thus gone to court to seek relief. Goldwater also filed a brief asking the California Supreme Court to reinforce the separation of powers to block the Governor from writing laws in his state.
Liberty Justice Center filed a First Amendment lawsuit against an Oregon school district on behalf of a high school track and field coach who was fired for proposing an open division for transgender athletes to compete in, to ensure fairness for all student athletes. The Center also filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to overturn a lower court ruling that would grant school administrators virtually unchecked discretion to punish elementary school children for their self-expression. Finally in interviews on ABC 10, National Review’s Radio Free California, the Lisa Wexler Show, and the Matt Christiansen Hour, Senior Counsel Emily Rae discussed the Liberty Justice Center’s recent lawsuit challenging AB 1955—Newsom’s controversial law attempting to ban parental notification policies across California.
Texas Public Policy Foundation’s case defending local fisherman whose livelihoods have been severely impacted by the Biden Administration’s Vineyard Wind Project through the project’s continued destruction of local fishing grounds proceeded to the First Circuit Court of Appeals which is set to hear oral arguments on the case. The Foundation also filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for implementing a rule stemming from the December 2022 omnibus spending bill.
Goldwater Institute: In a victory against the administrative state, a Biden Administration rule which would have decimated the restaurant industry nationwide has been dropped. Goldwater’s formal comment was cited 12 times during the rulemaking process and played a pivotal role in defeating the proposed measure.
Caesar Rodney Institute issued a brief confirming a troubling connection between offshore wind construction and whale deaths, based on reports from an acoustic consultant and a professor of computer science.
California Policy Center released a brief that aims to “take back California” by calling for solutions to problems that are universal to all state residents.
Kansas Policy Institute published a brief demonstrating the alarming outmigration trends taking place in Kansas due to an increased tax burden and economic growth stagnation—demonstrating the great need to adopt the Institute’s proposed “path to prosperity” which includes a range of solutions that promotes pro-growth reforms.
Mountain States Policy Center released briefs that show that abolishing certificate of needs policies improve access to healthcare and expose how the Bureau of Land Management’s recent ruling threatens Wyoming’s K-12 funding model.
Washington Policy Center released briefs that provide an update to the cost of long-term care in Washington, showing how initiative 2124 would impact the mandatory long-term-care program and highlighting needed reforms in Medicaid, and report on the tight 5-4 vote to keep Gray Wolves on the endangered species list in Washington, in spite of 15 years of population increases.
Maine: The state’s Joint Rules Committee met to consider the ending the practice of “concept drafts”—a practice which allows lawmakers to submit legislation which only includes a basic description of the bill’s subject matter. As a result, the real substance of these bills are often published only days or even hours before a bill’s public hearing, which means the public cannot meaningfully testify on what the bill actually entails (Maine Policy Institute).
Wisconsin: Voters in the state will have an opportunity to approve two constitutional amendments in the coming August 13 election that will preserve the constitutional checks and balances that vest spending authority with the Wisconsin Legislature and prevent any governor from acting outside of their authority with taxpayer money (Badger Institute, Institute for Reforming Government and Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty).
Topics:
Should AI Be in Schools?
Center of the American Experiment
Disciplinary Problems Still Plague Rochester Schools Post-Pandemic
Center of the American Experiment
Special Needs Students Thrive in Cyber Charters
Commonwealth Foundation
Fully Funded Public Education Must Include Cyber Charters
Commonwealth Foundation
Despite What You Hear, K-12 Public Education a Priority
Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
AFT Pushing Students to Declare ‘Independence’ From Parents
Freedom Foundation
An Idaho Story NOT Coming to Montana
Frontier Institute
A Permission Slip to Learn About Lincoln? Arizona AG’s Illegal Attack on ESA Families
Goldwater Institute
Ways Forward on Five Key School District Policies
Independence Institute
Michigan Needs Better Policies to Keep Kids in School
Mackinac Center
Maine Falling Behind as Other States Embrace School Choice
Maine Policy Institute
Why Some Mississippi ‘Conservatives’ Oppose Trump on School Choice
Maine Policy Institute
Oklahoma Supreme Court Errs on Religious School Decision
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Don’t Politicize Cell Phone-Free Education
Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy
New DPI Data Shows Alarming Enrollment and Spending Trends
Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty
California’s Water Economy: The Three Biggest Choices
California Policy Center
Wake Up California: Free Market Energy Solutions Work
California Policy Center
MISO Warns of Capacity Shortfall
Center of the American Experiment
Reality Begins to Bite the Governor on NY’s Unreal Renewable Energy Goals
Empire Center
Virginia in Real Danger of Running Out of Other People’s Power
Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy
Wyoming’s Energy Future: The Impact of EPA Rules with Isaac Orr
Wyoming Liberty Group
An Evaluation of 340B in Massachusetts
Pioneer Institute
It’s a Breath of Fresh Air
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
On Housing, Granite Staters Want More Development, Less Gov’t Interference
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
Short-Term Rental Model Ordinance
Libertas Institute
How to Regulate Short-Term Rentals
Libertas Institute
Rent Control: A Terrible and Counterproductive Idea
Mackinac Center
Beyond Musk’s Departure, More Grim California News
California Policy Center
Elon Musk: Newsom Signing AB 1955 “Final Straw”
California Policy Center
IRS Data Show Sharp Increase in Net Loss of Higher Earners from Minnesota
Center of the American Experiment
IRS Data Show Minnesota Losing Residents in Every Age Category
Center of the American Experiment
ICCU Incident Makes Case for New Banking Paradigm
Idaho Freedom Foundation
As D.C. Adopts Sound Money Principles, States Must Continue to Lead
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Illinois Unemployment Jumps to 5% in June
Illinois Policy
Beware of ‘Trustworthy Guys’
Indiana Policy Review Foundation
Iowa’s Migration Results for 2022
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Bidenomics: 1.5 Million Full-Time Jobs Lost Over the Last Year
John Locke Foundation
Politicians Count Subsidy Chickens Before They Hatch
Mackinac Center
Court Ruling in SpaceX Case Could Fundamentally Alter Private-Sector Unions
Mackinac Center
Despite Its Precedent, Oklahoma Supreme Court Allows Minimum-Wage Initiative to Proceed
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
People Moving to Oklahoma Bring $1 Billion with Them
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
South Carolina, The New Frontier for Tech? Here’s How to Make It Happen
Palmetto Promise Institute
Average Weekly Wage Change for two Massachusetts Counties with Differing Densities.
Pioneer Institute
Government Agencies Should Develop a Financial Plan—Here’s How
California Policy Center
Green Tax Credits Benefit Wealthier Households Most
Center of the American Experiment
AZ Taxpayers on the Hook for School Board Member’s Trip to Social Justice Conference?
Goldwater Institute
How New 2024 Tax Expenditures Undermine TABOR
Independence Institute
More Evidence that “Direct Taxes” include Levies on Wealth and Income
Independence Institute
Iowa’s Sales Tax-Free Weekend Is Coming Up, but Is It Good Policy?
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Corporate Welfare: An Unfair Policy with a Failed Track Record
John Locke Foundation
High Tax-State Exodus: Kansas Feels the Impact
Kansas Policy Institute
National Review: South Carolina Quietly Fixing Its Tax Problems. A Blue State or Two Could Learn from Our Example.
Palmetto Promise Institute
Taxation Without Connection: When Local Fees Don’t Consider Local Needs
Pelican Institute
PA Teachers Union Accused of Laundering $1.5 Million in Members’ Dues to Bankroll Josh Shapiro’s 2022 Candidacy
Freedom Foundation
New Jersey: Narrow Opt-Out Window No Problem
Freedom Foundation
Pressure Principle and Leadership
Cardinal Institute
Keep Your Eye on Founding Principles
Indiana Policy Review Foundation
Stanford’s Arnold Rampersad on Jackie Robinson
Pioneer Institute
In RealClearMarkets, The Free State Foundation’s Randy May refutes the wrong-headed claims that the Supreme Court’s jettisoning of the Chevron deference doctrine in Loper is anti-constitutional.
In The American Spectator, the Independent Institute’s Lloyd Billingsley shows how “property crime” is totally out of control in the Golden State.
In The American Spectator, the Independent Institute’s Lloyd Billingsley calls for a healthy intake of economic and medical reality to prevent the spread of reality dysphoria.
In The Washington Times, The James Madison Institute’s Edward Longe points out the ruse of calling for censorship under the guise of protecting kids.
In The Federalist, People United for Privacy Foundation‘s Brian Hawkins explains how the IRS Tea Party targeting scandal opened the door for political prosecutions against President Trump.
