Announcements

• Several state think tanks signed a coalition letter to Congress supporting critical free speech and privacy provisions.
• The Buckeye Institute welcomed Alex M. Certo as a legal fellow with Buckeye’s Legal Center.
• The Buckeye Institute joined an amicus brief urging the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama Northern Division to quash a Department of Justice subpoena served on the Eagle Forum of Alabama, which the Biden Administration issued in an effort to weaponize the civil litigation process “against organizations with whom the United States Government disagrees.” 
• The Caesar Rodney Institute considered why Delaware’s FOIA process is still stuck in the 1970s.
• The Foundation for Government Accountability joined a legal brief pushing back against President Biden’s weaponized Department of Justice as it continues to target the administration’s political enemies.
• The Institute for Reforming Government (IRG) announced the hiring of Elizabeth Evenson as Senior Policy and Operations Advisor. They also announced the addition of Patrick Hughes as Fellow in Corrections and Public Safety.
• PERC launched the Conservation Law and Policy Center, a project that brings a refreshing new perspective to environmental policy reform, addressing conservation challenges through cooperation, market solutions, and incentives.
• Florida voters are overwhelmingly concerned about inflation and the rising costs of consumer goods (42%) over other issues such as immigration (9%) and gun control (8%), according to a new poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies on behalf of The James Madison Institute.

Success stories

• The Goldwater Institute is a finalist for the Atlas Network’s 2022 Templeton Freedom Award.

• A federal judge in Louisiana ruled that the federal government cannot require Head Start program teachers, staff and volunteers be vaccinated against COVID-19, nor can they require that adults and students wear masks. In December 2021, teacher Sandy Brick filed a lawsuit in federal court Louisiana to stop the mandate and are represented by the national law firm Liberty Justice Center and the Louisiana-based Pelican Institute for Public Policy.

This Week on SPN.org

Georgia senate race distracts from more relevant state elections

State Policy Network’s Ed-Prize recognizes innovative nonprofits expanding learning options for parents and students

The 2022 SPN Network Award recognizes think tanks who stood up for Americans and businesses harmed by the vaccine mandate

2022 Bob Williams Awards celebrate state policy solutions that improve American lives and livelihoods

State Policy Network presents the 2022 Thomas A. Roe Award to Randy Hicks of the Georgia Center for Opportunity

State Policy Network presents the 2022 Overton Award to Greg Sindelar of the Texas Public Policy Foundation

SPN’s new talent report considers how state think tanks can hire and retain talent

The 2022 Communications Excellence Awards recognize state think tanks using strategic communications to improve K-12 education for American families

Solutions from the states: This week’s policy briefs

• The Badger Institute released an assessment of Wisconsin’s early care and learning system for young children.
• Badger Institute also published a new report that outlines common-sense healthcare reforms for Wisconsin.
• The California Policy Center outlined California’s 2022 ballot measures.
• The Foundation for Government Accountability explained why Florida is a national model for regulatory reform.
• The Pelican Institute released the Tech Policy Toolkit—one-pagers and studies on important policy areas like broadband and antitrust.
• A new study by the Pioneer Institute notes legislators must answer key questions before setting policy for app-based rideshare/delivery workers.

Policy News from the States

Crime

Safety Concerns Prompt A Call For More Cops In Downtown Fargo
Center of the American Experiment

Experts Say More Police, Diversion Programs, Can Lower Crime
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Education

Arizona Offers All Children School Choice; Oregon Should, Too
Cascade Policy Institute

Poor-Performing School Districts Need a Heavy Dose of Accountability
Goldwater Institute

Chicago School Enrollment Declines For 11th Year
Illinois Policy Institute

Pay Differentiation Can Heal Missouri’s “Teaching Shortage”
Show-Me Institute

Energy and the Environment

Gov. Walz’s 100 Percent Carbon-Free Electricity Mandate Would Make Electricity More Expensive For Businesses
Center of the American Experiment

The Real-World Costs and Consequences of Restricting Natural Gas
Independence Institute

California’s Energy Problems Are Affecting Washington State Electricity Prices
Washington Policy Center

Government Accountability

Pritzker Signs 34th Consecutive Emergency Order As Biden Declares COVID ‘Over’
Illinois Policy Institute

Healthcare

How Direct Primary Care Could Help Curtail Alaska’s High Health Care Spending
Alaska Policy Forum

What Right to Try Can Teach Us About Cancer Moonshots
Goldwater Institute

Medicaid Reform In Texas Can Help More Than 400,000 Children Get Coverage
Texas Public Policy Foundation

Housing

Looking For Housing In All The Wrong Places?
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii

Jobs And State Economies

Since 2011, Minnesota Has Lost 41,000 Residents On Net To States Without An Income Tax
Center of the American Experiment

Fact Check: Unemployment Under Pritzker Worse Than Midwest, U.S.
Illinois Policy Institute

North Carolina’s Unemployment Rate Increases in August for the First Time Since Covid-19
John Locke Foundation

Unspoken Reality Gets Bigger As Kansas Jobs Shrink
Kansas Policy Institute

Please Exempt Me? Workers Seek A Way Out Of New State Payroll Tax For Good Reason
Washington Policy Center

State Budgets and Spending

Lessons Learned From Iowa Tax History
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation

Combating Runaway Property Taxes
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation

Remember The Lessons Of State Shortfall Years
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

Steady Revenue Forecast Since February Primes Pump For Tax Relief
Washington Policy Center

Workplace Freedom

Labor Coalition Launches Campaign In Battleground States
American for Fair Treatment

Payback Parade
American for Fair Treatment

California’s Unions Are Misusing Their Power
California Policy Center

Who Owns The California State Legislature?
California Policy Center

What Does Amendment 1 Look Like On Nov. 8 Ballot?
Illinois Policy Institute

Worker Power Is Found in the Free Market, Not Unions
John Locke Foundation

Indiana Works With Right-To-Work
Mackinac Center

State Government Employee Unions Warn Of “Dangerous” And “Disrespectful” Pay Talks With Governor
Washington Policy Center

Seattle School Officials And Powerful Union Settle Another Teacher Strike, By Agreeing To Spend Public Money They Don’t Have
Washington Policy Center

Other

ESG And The Collapse Of The Free Market
Alabama Policy Institute

Change Laws. Change Lives.
Empower Mississippi

Queen Elizabeth’s Funeral And The Evolving American Presidency
Sutherland Institute

Think Tanks in the News

The Unions Are At It Again
Americans for Fair Treatment on Chalkboard Review

Excuses Are Easy — Meaningful Policy Change Takes Bold Leadership
Alabama Policy Institute in Alabama Today

Alabamians Deserve More Than A One-Time Tax Rebate
Alabama Policy Institute at Alabama Today

What Pet Projects Is Alaska Paying For?
Alaska Policy Forum in the Anchorage Daily News

Dems Talk Hiking Taxes On Private Equity & Hedge Fund Managers; GOP Has Done It
Beacon Center in the Citizen Times

Who Owns the California State Legislature?
California Policy Center in The Epoch Times

Democrats’ War On Charter Schools Is Sending Families Into The Arms Of Republicans
Commonwealth Foundation in The Federalist

How To Stop The Next Student Debt Cancellation Fiasco
Foundation for Government Accountability at The Daily Caller

ESG Corps Are a Threat to Free Enterprise — and Texas is Pushing Back
Foundation for Government Accountability in the Denton Record-Chronicle

The Academic Market In Full Effect
Georgia Public Policy Foundation in the Dalton Daily Citizen

What’s Causing Hawaii’s Housing-Market Crunch?
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii in The Wall Street Journal

What A Comic Strip Teaches About Changing The Illinois Constitution
Illinois Policy Institute in The Center Square

Polis Taketh Away Tax Credits — And Giveth To Others
Independence Institute at Colorado Politics

The Public School System Works to Sustain the System, Not for Students
Kansas Policy Institute in the Washington Examiner

Democrats Play Dangerous Game With FDA Reauthorization
Pacific Research Institute in the Washington Examiner

Georgia Senate Race Distracts From More Relevant State Elections
State Policy Network and Georgia Public Policy Foundation in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

States Are Showing Washington How to Relieve Inflation
State Policy Network in The American Spectator

Biden’s Border Crisis Is Out Of Control. Here’s How Local Law Enforcement Can Fight Back
Texas Public Policy Foundation at Fox News Online

Low Expectations Lead to Low Results
Texas Public Policy Foundation at Newsweek

Expensive Climate Action Plans Aren’t Always The Greenest
Washington Policy Center in The Spokesman-Review

Events and Opportunities

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