November 22, 2024
Week in Review: November 22, 2024
America First Policy Institute’s America First Works (AFW) applauded President Donald J. Trump’s decision to appoint AFW Senior Advisors Linda McMahon as the next Secretary of Education, Doug Collins as the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and Matt Whitaker as the next US Ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
The Buckeye Institute delivered legislative testimony before the reconvening Ohio General Assembly. Buckeye urged lawmakers to adopt sound, market-based reforms to lower regulatory barriers to healthcare and adopt policies to help Ohio meet its growing energy needs.
California Policy Center launched its Local Fiscal Health Dashboard which tracks the financial health of California cities, counties and school districts. The interactive database allows users to track how elected officials are managing local budgets, support ongoing budget decision making and identify financial red flags.
Independent Institute unveiled its new Comparative Cultures Ethnic Studies Curriculum, an alternative to the state curriculum for ethnic studies which is mandated for California high schoolers, at the Commonwealth Club World Affairs event.
Institute for Reforming Government’s Center for Investigative Oversight released a report analyzing the Wisconsin Legislature’s ability to exercise oversight over State Implementation Plans required under the federal Clean Air Act. The report finds that the complex nature of the requirements under the Clean Air Act has resulted in many rules approved with little input from the Legislature.
Kansas Policy Institute’s investigative journalists exposed documentation that proved that the Kansas State Board of Education and the state school board association are still promoting the principles of Critical Race Theory.
Mackinac Center released a new report, Going in Reverse, that gives current and newly elected school board members new resources to prioritize student achievement during collective bargaining negotiations. The Center also launched Solutions for School Boards, an online resource for school board members interested in learning more about collective bargaining.
Platte Institute released a new episode of its Nebraskanomics podcast featuring Michael Lucci, who examines Nebraska’s latest tax rankings.
PRiME Center at Saint Louis University issued a new report which that shows homeschooling surging in Missouri — a tremendous win for one of the many forms of school choice and parent empowerment.
Texas Public Policy Foundation and the Foundation for American Innovation hosted a primer on the future of artificial intelligence (AI) in Texas that answered the question, “how do we responsibly, transparently, and effectively harness the power of AI while minimizing or outright preventing irreparable harm?”
The Buckeye Institute filed an amicus brief urging the US Supreme Court to hear the case, GHP Management Corp. v. Los Angeles, arguing that Los Angeles’ pandemic-era eviction ban deprived property owners of a fundamental element of their property rights in violation of the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution. The Manhattan Institute joined The Buckeye Institute on its brief.
Institute for Free Speech filed an amicus brief in Boehringer Ingelheim v. HHS, urging the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to strike down provisions of the “Drug Price Negotiation Program” that compel pharmaceutical companies to endorse messages mandated by the federal government. “The government cannot compel the companies or anyone else to speak its message, let alone a false one: that they ‘agreed’ to the new ‘maximum fair price,’ and accordingly, that they have overcharged their customers for years,” explains the brief.
Liberty Justice Center filed a lawsuit to protect the First Amendment rights of a North Carolina man who has been forcibly silenced at the public meetings of his local county board of commissioners. The Center also filed an amicus brief urging the US Supreme Court to hear GHP Management Corporation v. City of Los Angeles, a case challenging the city of Los Angeles’s COVID-era eviction moratorium as a violation of property owners’ Fifth Amendment rights. In addition, an Oregon court is set to hear oral arguments in the Center’s First Amendment lawsuit defending Coach John Parks, a track and field coach who was fired for proposing an open division for transgender high school athletes to compete in, to ensure fairness for all student athletes. Finally, the Center announced that seven more members of the Chicago Teachers Union joined its efforts to hold CTU leadership accountable for failing to produce audits for over four years.
Pennsylvania: October marked a turning point for Pennsylvania public employees choosing to opt out of union membership, with the report of a 70 percent increase in opt-outs over the monthly average — a true high point for 2024 (Freedom Foundation).
The Buckeye Institute released a new policy report that outlines nine commonsense policy and regulatory reforms to increase transparency, choice, and competition that policymakers in all 50 states should adopt to make healthcare more affordable as employers across the country struggle to find affordable healthcare plans that meet the needs of their employees. As Ohio lawmakers review hundreds of licensing boards,Buckeye also issued a new policy memo urging lawmakers to continue reducing burdensome and unnecessary occupational licensing requirements that hinder careers and make it harder for people to join the workforce. This latest paper builds on previous Buckeye research identifying specific licenses the state should eliminate or reform.
Idaho Freedom Foundation posted briefs that call for a bold rethink of education, examine how an Idaho district is saving taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars by ending its COVID-19 vaccine subsidies, and question if lawmakers will listen to the people’s mandates for increased parental rights and smaller government or listen to special interests demanding subsidies and kickbacks.
John Locke Foundation published a brief which evaluates several reform opportunities for making the North Carolina General Assembly more transparent, effective, and responsive to the public.
Kansas Policy Institute published a new brief, The Responsible Kansas Budget, encouraging legislators to limit spending increase to inflation plus population growth.
Mountain States Policy Center posted briefs that show how federal forest managers are getting tangled up in their own bureaucracy, call for electronic cattle and bison ear tag mandates to be scrapped, compare the proposed Idaho legislator salary increase to other state salaries, and examine potential reforms to Idaho’s ballot fiscal impact statement process.
Platte Institute issued a brief examining ways that legislators could ensure property tax relief by strengthening Nebraska’s school funding and tax caps.
Washington Policy Center released briefs reporting on new budget proposals in the Olympia legislature that would increase state employee pay, even as legislators complain about budget shortfalls without this increase, and highlighting how many voters were confused by the state ballot initiative’s language, which was seemingly purposefully written to leave more voters in the dark.
North Carolina: The North Carolina House of Representatives overrode Governor Cooper’s veto of the Opportunity Scholarship Program expansion which would provide $463 million in funding to help meet increased demand for the program. The action now shifts to the North Carolina Senate for a vote — stay tuned for more (John Locke Foundation).
Oklahoma: State Sen. Michael Bergstrom filed new legislation that proposes that the state’s personal income tax rate would be immediately reduced and then gradually eliminated — crucial legislation that can be considered when the 2025 legislative session begins on Feb. 3, 2025 (Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs).
Topics:
Saint Paul Public Schools Debuts Reading Literacy Documentary
Center of the American Experiment
Education Issues Were a Priority for Parents This Election Cycle
Center of the American Experiment
What Would Happen Without the US Department of Education?
Center of the American Experiment
The US Department of Education Against Education
Commonwealth Foundation
NYSED Releases Months-Late Student Scores
Empire Center
Statewide ELA & Math Testing
Empire Center
Lauren Washington: A Hopeless Fight for an ESA
Empower Mississippi
The Nusbaums: How Do We Live This Life?
Empower Mississippi
Maybe Blaine County Needs a New Name
Frontier Institute
New Information on Georgia Promise Scholarships Released
Georgia Public Policy Foundation
How Idaho Can Be at the Forefront of an Educational Renaissance
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Operating-Table Diversity
Indiana Policy Review Foundation
Parents Deserve Honesty on State Report Cards
Institute for Reforming Government
New Study Ranks North Carolina Last on Public-School Choice
John Locke Foundation
Trump Won: Now End Fed Ed
Libertas Institute
Michigan Senate Bills Target Charter Schools
Mackinac Center
School Board Members Should Put Students First
Mackinac Center
How Anti-School Choice Republicans on Collision Course with Trump
Mississippi Center for Public Policy
Oklahoma’s Public-School Staffing Surge Raises Eyebrows
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Homeschooling Trends in Missouri with Collin Hitt
Show-Me Institute
Despite Support for Education Savings Accounts, Awareness of Utah Fits All Remains Low
Sutherland Institute
The Willis ISD Wake-Up Call
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Courtnie Bagley Testimony on Open Education Resources
Texas Public Policy Foundation
End Federal Control of Our Schools, Close the U.S. Department of Education
Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy
Wisconsin DPI Re-Defines Mediocre Student Achievement to “Meets Expectations”
Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty
DEQ’s Plan to Raise the Cost of Driving Should Be Cancelled
Cascade Policy Institute
Federal Funds Bankroll MN’s Carbon-Free Electricity by 2040 Mandate
Center of the American Experiment
“Dunkelflaute” Energy Policy Enters the Doldrums
Center of the American Experiment
Wind and Solar Construction Costs Rose in 2022, Natural Gas Fell
Center of the American Experiment
“Jaw-Dropping”: How Much Wind Capacity Is Needed for Carbon Neutrality Without Nuclear
John Locke Foundation
New England State Renewable Energy Mandates Will Double Energy Costs, Cause Rolling Blackouts, While NH Policies Reduce Regional Costs
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
Wisconsin Businesses Applaud Line 5 Decision, Environmental Groups Howl
MacIver Institute
The Market Speaks – Against Electric Vehicles
Mackinac Center
Six Major Costs of New England’s Renewable Energy Policies
Maine Policy Institute
Gas Warfare in California
Pacific Research Institute
Desert Push for New Solar Farm Threatens Worker Health, Local Water Supply
Pacific Research Institute
New Energy Report: Expect Doubled Electric Rates & Rolling Blackouts
Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity
How Trump Can Make the Nixonian Dream of 1,000 Nuclear Power Plants a Reality
Texas Public Policy Foundation
The Staggering Costs of New England’s Green Energy Policies
Yankee Institute
My Experience with Free Market Healthcare
Frontier Institute
Idaho Health Board Ends State-Funded Covid Vaccine — Now It’s Time for Others to Follow Suit
Idaho Freedom Foundation
How to Speed Up Permitting in Hawaii
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Ensuring Property Tax Relief: Strengthening Nebraska’s School Funding and Tax Caps
Platte Institute
The Tyrant’s Veto: Valid Petition Reform
Texas Public Policy Foundation
I See People Leaving
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
No Regulation without Representation
Institute for Reforming Government
Illinois No. 3 for Highest Unemployment in October
Illinois Policy
The Inconvenient Truth of Economic Development Failures in Des Moines
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Why Adversarial AI Laws Are the Wrong Move for America
James Madison Institute + Libertas Institute
Don’t Fear the Future of Florida’s Property Insurance Market
James Madison Institute
Have Some Standards, Will You?
Mackinac Center
A Generation of Subsidies Hasn’t Created Auto Jobs in Michigan
Mackinac Center
Food Truck Freedom: A New Era in Culinary Mobility
Palmetto Promise Institute
Pioneer Institute Study Finds Massachusetts Saw Four-Fold Loss of Income to Net Outmigration
Pioneer Institute
Massachusetts Job Market Bears Watching
Pioneer Institute
Promise and Peril: How Texas Can Lead on Responsible Artificial Intelligence Policy
Texas Public Policy Foundation
In 2022, Minnesota Spent $40,000 on Welfare Per Person in Poverty
Center of the American Experiment
How to Fix Pennsylvania’s Looming Budget Dilemma
Commonwealth Foundation
Idaho Health Board Ends State-Funded Covid Vaccine — Now It’s Time for Others to Follow Suit
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Vallas: Chicago Transit Authority Is City’s 3rd Budget Crisis
Illinois Policy
Pekin Passes Grocery Tax, Taking Away $1M in Savings for Shoppers
Illinois Policy
Iowa Counties Are Not “Broke”
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Kauger’s Annual Retirement Is $161,112
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Despite the Promises, Bullet Train Lesson in ‘Sunk Costs’
Pacific Research Institute
Louisiana Should Eliminate the Burdensome Corporate Franchise Tax
Pelican Institute
Statewide Efficiency Audits: Overview and Model Legislation
Texas Public Policy Foundation
How Much Local Debt Was Added in the November 2024 Election?
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Empowering Public Employees: 282 OAPSE Members Opt Out in Just Three Months
Freedom Foundation
Chicago Teachers Union President Paid Over $269K but Hides Union Financial Records
Illinois Policy
State Employee Union Cries Recession Is Coming to Save Temporary Jobs
Yankee Institute
The Berlin Wall and Serendipity
Cardinal Institute
Institutions Worth Preserving Have to Be Defended
Georgia Public Policy Foundation
Voters Sent a Message to Politicians This November, But the Cronies Missed the Memo
Idaho Freedom Foundation
The Governor Should Not Be Able to Subvert Voters’ Will Through Appointments
John Locke Foundation
Populist Policy Solutions to Empower Outsiders
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
Oklahoma Group Launches Effort to Adopt California Voting System
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
When Ambition and Ideology Outpace Reality and Prudent Policymaking
Pacific Research Institute
In The Wall Street Journal, The Buckeye Institute calls on President-elect Trump to protect Americans from government censorship.
In the New York Post, Center of the American Experiment’s Debra Struhsacker and Sarah Montalbano encourage President Trump to unwind Biden’s destructive throttling of America’s resources.
In the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Commonwealth Foundation’s Elizabeth Stelle and Adam Kissel highlight the problems with the US Department of Education’s proposed regulations on asynchronous learning.
In the Daily Caller, the Foundation for Government Accountability’s Sam Adolphsen makes the case for a state-level DOGE project.
In his recent column, the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s Kyle Wingfield underscores the importance of upholding institutions like the filibuster.
In the Chicago Tribune, the Illinois Policy Institute’s Paul Vallas notes Chicago’s federal consent decree will not improve policing.
In his recent column, the Independence Institute’s Jon Caldara highlights how Trump’s win puts progressive intolerance on display.
In his recent column for The Denver Gazette, the Independence Institute‘s Jon Caldara highlights diversity lessons from never-Trumpers.
In the Colorado Springs Gazette, the Independence Institute’s Barry Fagin points out children are not the property of the state.
In The American Spectator, the Independent Institute’s Lloyd Billingsley examines the election aftermath in California.
In The American Conservative, Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation’s John Hendrickson shows how Patrick J. Buchanan’s conservative voice paved the way for the America First movement.
In the Delta-Democrat Times, the Mississippi Center for Public Policy’s Douglas Carswell notes Trump will push for school choice.
In the Twin Falls Times-News, the Mountain States Policy Center’s Jason Mercier argues Idaho should reform its ballot fiscal impact statement process.
In his recent column, the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs’ Jonathan Small encourages Oklahoma lawmakers to cut red tape.
In her column for Newsmax, the Pacific Research Institute’s Sally Pipes notes Trump now has a chance to finish his work on healthcare.
In the Santa Monica Observer, the Pacific Research Institute‘s Sally Pipes points out scope-of-practice laws put patients in the crosshairs.
In the Washington Examiner, the Pacific Research Institute’s Sally Pipes highlights five ways Trump can improve healthcare.
In The Kansas City Star, the Show-Me Institute’s Patrick Tuohey considers the Kansas City mayor’s proposal to tax vacant lots.
In The Federalist, Sutherland Institute’s William Duncan notes the Supreme Court shouldn’t let the federal government control 70 percent of a state’s land.
In The Federalist, the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Greyson Gee highlights how Trump can make the Nixonian dream of 1,000 nuclear power plants a reality.
