November 8, 2024
Week in Review: November 8, 2024
Caesar Rodney Institute celebrated the 250th anniversary of the First Continental Congress by reflecting on Caesar Rodney’s influential role in setting America on its path to independence through his early leadership, commitment to colonial unity, and progressive stance against British policies.
Empower Mississippi announced that Kyle Mann, editor-in-chief at The Babylon Bee, will be a keynote speaker at Empower’s upcoming Solutions Summit.
Kansas Policy Institute’s investigative journalists exposed a potential violation of state privacy laws in a school district and that taxpayers may have to pay over $2 billion for unnecessary power plants.
Mountain States Policy Center released a comprehensive update on outcomes of the 2024 ballot measures in the Mountain States and a reminder that, despite election fatigue, the real work begins after election day.
South Carolina Policy Council released a set of key takeaways from South Carolina’s statehouse’s elections.
The Buckeye Institute filed an amicus brief in two important school choice cases—Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond and St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School v. Drummond—calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the cases and reaffirm that the government cannot discriminate against religious schools by excluding them from programs available to other schools.
Liberty Justice Center filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Speech First v. Whitten, a case regarding the threat that university “bias response teams” pose to students’ free speech. In a hearing, the Liberty Justice Center will urge a Wyoming federal court to reinstate Dr. Eric Cubin to the Wyoming Board of Medicine. In April, Governor Mark Gordon forced Dr. Cubin to resign from his position on the Board for supporting Chloe’s Law—a bill which the Governor signed into law and has since publicly commended himself for enacting. The Liberty Justice Center’s lawsuit argues that the Governor engaged in illegal retaliation and violated Dr. Cubin’s First Amendment rights by firing him for exercising his right to free speech.
Texas Public Policy Foundation filed an amicus brief presenting new evidence showing that special counsel in the US Department of Justice do not have the power to initiate criminal prosecutions.
Arizona: With the passage of Prop 312,businesses in the state may now receive a refund up to the amount of their property tax liability for mitigation expenses due to a municipality’s purposeful failure to enforce nuisance regulations — needed relief for Arizonans whose livelihoods are being destroyed as municipalities refuse to enforce the law (Goldwater Institute).
Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon: Voters are rejecting proposals in these states to implement ranked choice voting, showing how Americans nationwide share concerns about the practice and may prefer to keep voting simple with one vote per race (Idaho Freedom Foundation, Mountain States Policy Center, and Nevada Policy).
Minnesota: Voters elected 80 achievement-focused candidates to 47 school boards across the state — a positive move for students across the state (Center of the American Experiment).
Oklahoma: In a win for school choice in the state, voters for the first time in state history chose to oust a sitting member of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, partially in response to a retention campaign made on the grounds that these justices had repealed a form of education freedom in the state (Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs).
Washington: Though official vote tallies have not yet been posted, a potential win regarding a ban on natural gas construction waits in the wings. Stay tuned for more… (Washington Policy Center).
Caesar Rodney Institute issued a brief urging the state’s next governor to declare a “State of Emergency in Education” and implement a four-part reform program to address the urgent need for meaningful change, especially in light of Delaware’s declining educational outcomes and high spending.
Idaho Freedom Foundation posted briefs which show how Idaho can follow Florida’s reformation of general education courses to have a heavier focus on foundational knowledge and critical thinking skills and outline why the campaign behind the ranked choice voting ballot measure was dishonest.
Instituto de Libertad Económica para Puerto Rico released a new report which outlines a path for an economically prosperous Puerto Rico, which was noted in a column in the Wall Street Journal.
Mountain States Policy Center released briefs which examines a proposed ban on plastics and calls for reform to America’s “blank check spending mentality”.
Washington Policy Center published briefs highlighting the savings from a bad bill its research helped defeat last legislative session and exposing ways that changes can be made beyond what electoral politics dictate.
Idaho: Tuesday night’s election results in Idaho showed broad support for education choice, setting the table for policymakers to expand education options for families in the state (Mountain States Policy Center).
Illinois: With between 84% and 95% of the votes counted in the 10 school board districts, candidates backed by the Chicago Teachers Union were losing most of the seats in Chicago’s first-ever elected school board races. Despite the union’s more than $1 million campaign spend on its candidates, this poor showing is clear evidence that voters are tired of paying more to get less from city schools (Illinois Policy).
Utah: Plans for doubling the state’s energy output over the next ten years, Operation Gigawatt, have been announced, with nuclear energy taking center stage. Backed by strong public support and a strong economic need for greater energy abundance, Utah is staking its claim in the nuclear renaissance, positioning itself as a bold leader in energy (Libertas Institute).
Topics:
How Do Four-Day School Weeks Impact Teachers and Students?
Center of the American Experiment
New Jersey’s Approach to Educational Funding Formula Review
Garden State Initiative
Fact-Checking Josh Stein’s Criticism of the Opportunity Scholarship Program: Part Two
John Locke Foundation
Why Are Louisiana’s Public School Leaders Still Not Spending the Money They’ve Been Allocated to Help Students Learn?
Pelican Institute
Statement of Pioneer Institute on MCAS Ballot Failure and State of Education in Massachusetts
Pioneer Institute
The Fiscal Effects of School Choice with Marty Lueken
Show-Me Institute
New Data Highlights Voter Priorities in Education
Sutherland Institute
Utah’s 2025 Education Agenda: What to Expect for the Parent-Teacher Partnership
Sutherland Institute
Dr. Helen Baxendale on Great Hearts Classical Liberal Arts Charter Schools
Pioneer Institute
Election’s over. What’s next for the Chicago School Board?
Illinois Policy
The Closing of Boardman Coal Plant and the Hubris of Fossil Fuel Opponents
Cascade Policy Institute
Wisconsin Utility Moves Forward on Nuclear Power
Center of the American Experiment
A Bee Kills Facebook’s Nuclear Dreams
Center of the American Experiment
Utah’s Nuclear Energy Moment
Libertas Institute
Stop Blaming Maine Drivers for Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Maine Policy Institute
More Questions About Storing Nuclear Waste in Wyoming
Wyoming Liberty Group
Feds Push Western Solar Plan
Wyoming Liberty Group
Medicare Physician Reimbursement Policy
Goldwater Institute
Healthcare Reform Agenda
Paragon Institute
Getting Started with Cottage Court Starter Homes
Libertas Institute
More Rent Control Won’t Reverse San Francisco’s Downward Spiral
Pacific Research Institute
Tennessee Growth Tamed by Taxes
Beacon Center of Tennessee
‘Prosperous’ Is a Matter of Delimitation
Indiana Policy Review Foundation
Innovation Under Siege: Federal Regulations Threaten Michigan Colleges
Mackinac Center
Innovators and Entrepreneurs: Xprize as Catalyst
Mackinac Center
Oklahoma Supreme Court Activism Hits Oil Industry
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Senate Panel Forgets Farmers in Discussion about Agriculture
Pacific Research Institute
Data Center of Attention: The Power Houses of the Digital World
Pelican Institute
St. Louis Making the Right Moves on Regulation
Show-Me Institute
The Hartford Issues Warning to Businesses to Prepare for Election Day Civil Unrest
Yankee Institute
Audits and Good Governance
Cardinal Institute
Here Are the States that Outperform Minnesota and Spend Less
Center of the American Experiment
Beware the Blob!
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
‘Millionaire Tax’ Being Backed by Illinois Voters
Illinois Policy
First Illinois Voters to be Asked Overwhelmingly Back Public Pension Reform
Illinois Policy
Results Are In: 12 Counites Asked for an EMS Property Tax Increase
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Six Years Later, Not a Single New Home Built for Victims of Matthew and Florence
John Locke Foundation
New Hampshire Passes Texas on Tax Competitiveness
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
Compulsory Charity Isn’t Charity
Mackinac Center
ESG Study Highlights Danger for Oklahoma Taxpayers
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Oklahoma Pension Changes May Have Been Based on Myth
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
The Rich Already Pay More Than Their Fair Share of Taxes
Rio Grande Foundation
CT Ranks Among Worse for Taxes Ten Years in a Row
Yankee Institute
Another Month, Another Opt-Out Record in California
Freedom Foundation
Washington: State Worker Tells Peers, ‘WFSE Isn’t Worth It’
Freedom Foundation
Why Am I Not a Teachers Union Member? It’s Simple as ABC.
Freedom Foundation
Justice Gorsuch, We Have an Update for You
Badger Institute
Reflections on the Last 900 Years, This Last Week, Elections and the Future
California Policy Center
The Electoral College in Context
Independence Institute
Newspapers for Sale — Cheap
Indiana Policy Review Foundation
The Election Is Over. Let’s Focus on Policy.
Georgia Public Policy Foundation
The 2024 Election Provides More Reasons to Switch to Hand-Marked Paper Ballots
John Locke Foundation
Wisconsin Senate Democrats Declare Victory, Turn Focus to 2026
MacIver Institute
What Colby’s Civic Health Report Means for Maine
Maine Policy Institute
Status Report: 2024 Election Security in South Carolina
Palmetto Promise Institute
Religion Can Help Take the Venom Out of Political Disagreement
Sutherland Institute
How to Stop Worrying about Presidential Elections and Learn to Love Federalism
Sutherland Institute
A Principled Stand
Texas Public Policy Foundation
At Star News Network, the California Policy Center‘s Edward Ring considers the integrity of this year’s election.
In Broad + Liberty, the Commonwealth Foundation’s David P. Hardy notes that in Philadelphia both teachers and their students want school choice.
At RealClear Markets, The Free State Foundation’s Randy May calls for the Federal government to stop converting internet service providers into public utilities.
In USA Today, contributor for the Garden State Initiative Danielle Zanzalari and Manhattan Institute’s E.J. McMahon point out the path to give New Jersey teachers a better retirement.
In another column, the Georgia Public Policy Foundation‘s Kyle Wingfield makes the case for the Electoral College.
In the Hawaii Tribune Herald, the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii‘s Jonathan Helton highlights how building permit delays create headaches for everyone.
In the Chicago Tribune, the Illinois Policy Institute‘s Paul Vallas considers how to address the city’s budget deficit through CPS.
In the Detroit News, Mackinac Center’s Mike Reitz exposes the problems with lawmakers signing non-disclosure agreements about public spending.
In The Kansas City Star, the Show-Me Institute‘s Patrick Tuohey argues rent control and financial assistance fail to address the housing supply crisis.
In The Mercury News, the Pacific Research Institute‘s Sally Pipes notes California needs more than medical schools to solve doctor shortage.
At Newsmax, the Pacific Research Institute‘s Sally Pipes notes the Left’s Medicaid fixation harms patients.
In The Sacramento Bee, the Pacific Research Institute‘s Wayne Winegarden asserts changes to California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard will cost families dearly.
