This weekly round-up shares the latest news about what the Network is doing to promote state-based solutions that will improve the lives of families, workers, and local communities. If you are an SPN member and have an update you’d like us to include in next week’s round-up, please email us at updates@spn.org (all submissions are subject to SPN approval).

Announcements

  • The Beacon Center of Tennessee was named one of Nashville’s best places to work by the Nashville Business Journal.
  • Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom‘s book, Big Brother in the Exam Room: The Dangerous Truth About Electronic Health Records,received a first-place honor in the 2018–2019 Reader Views Literary Awards. The book exposes how the mandated, government-certified electronic health record technology has negatively affected doctors and patients.
  • America’s Future Foundation is accepting nominations for their 2019 Buckley Awards. The Buckley Awards recognize outstanding young professionals for their above-and-beyond service to advance freedom in their cities, states, and across the country.

Success Stories

  • The Institute for Justice started off 2019 with a big win for educational choice. After years of litigation, it secured a ruling that, once and for all, preserves Florida’s two most popular school choice programs: the McKay Scholarship Program for Students with Disabilities and the Florida Tax Credit (FTC) Scholarship Program.
  • Thomas Jefferson Institute scored a win for education choice when Virginia Democratic Governor Ralph Northam signed legislation expanding the Virginia Education Improvement Scholarship Tax Credit for use by pre-kindergarten children. The Institute emphasized the need for quality preschool opportunities for low-income children, rather than the issue of “school choice.”

Research & Initiatives

  • The Buckeye Institute released its 2019 Piglet Book, identifying $2.5 billion in savings for Ohio taxpayers. The famous Piglet Book offers principles that should guide policymakers as they work to cut government spending and waste.
  • The Cardinal Institute released new research comparing West Virginia’s occupational licensing requirements to two of their neighbors. They found West Virginia had higher barriers to entry in 25 of the 64 occupations they analyzed and licensing fees were 7-8% higher on average.
  • The Empire Center took the first step toward legal action against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) for failing to release payroll information, again, as required under the Freedom of Information Law. 
  • ExcelinEd‘s report outlines how state policymakers can help public charter schools overcome obstacles to providing high-quality options to students—simply by connecting these schools to affordable financing options to build their own facilities.
  • James Madison Institute‘s recent report, “Bridging the Divide: Licensing and Recidivism,” noted that occupational licensing reform could make it easier for formerly incarcerated people to find work and re-integrate into society, resulting in lower re-arrest rates. Florida is considering deregulating many professions and JMI appeared before the Senate Committee on Innovation, Industry and Technology to discuss which occupations have excessive requirements.
  • What goes into school selection? The Pacific Research Institute‘s new book, Choosing Diversity, shows that parents select charter schools based on the diversity of educational experiences offered, not just test scores.
  • Secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services Alex Azar was the featured speaker at Pioneer Institute’s 2019 Hewitt Healthcare Lecture on “the Future of Healthcare in America.” In her remarks, Azar critiqued Medicare for All, favoring market-based approaches to improving healthcare access.
  • The New Mexico Land Office’s new logo reflects some politicians’ ideal—renewable energy—rather than the real source of the Office’s revenue: oil and gas. To raise awareness of this disparity, the Rio Grande Foundation is conducting a state-wide contest to create a “New Mexico-centric” logo that better represents the state.
  • A recent study from the Thomas Jefferson Institute found cigarette tax hikes in Virginia disproportionately harm lower income residents and rarely generate the revenue anticipated.
  • Truth in Accounting has released their Financial State of the Union report, which provides analysis of the US government’s financial report. The report found that the federal government financial condition worsened by $4.5 trillion in 2018.  
  • Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty released poll results showing Wisconsin voters’ views of education policy. The poll found little support for Governor Evers’ plans to attack school choice, and revealed strong support for charter and voucher schools among African Americans, Hispanics, and Millennials/Generation Z.

Think Tanks in the News

  • School choice is in the national news! The Arkansas Policy Foundation examines Texas’ education system as a way of anticipating consumers’ school choice preferences at the national level.
  • The California Policy Center identifies the three fundamental policy failures that have led to California’s homeless crisis and how each of them might be solved to address the problem of homelessness.
  • A $1.2 billion tax increase in Minnesota will impact “every Minnesotan, young and old, at every income level.” The Center of the American Experiment warns Minnesota residents will “pay more in gas taxes, tab fees, income taxes, capital gains taxes, death taxes and sick taxes.”
  • Ten months after the Janus decision, government workers are still fighting to exercise their First Amendment rights. The Commonwealth Foundation makes the case for why state governments need to start holding unions accountable.
  • The Vermont House “passed a bill last week that raised taxes on the wrong people to support a worthy cause for, in large measure, the wrong reasons.” The Ethan Allen Institute outlines how Vermont’s heating fuel tax increase will hurt everyone.
  • Oregon is considering legislation that would strengthen public sector unions, despite local governments’ concerns that it would be “impossible to implement fully.” Should the bill pass, the Freedom Foundation is ready to file a lawsuit in support of employees’ First Amendment rights that would be violated.
  • USA Today and The Arizona Republic published an article attacking model legislation and, in particular, the Goldwater Institute’s success with Right to Try. Goldwater’s response debunks the idea that model legislation is “an attempt to spread a secret political agenda” and illustrates how it can be used to make life better for more people.
  • Heritage Foundation president Kay Coles James shares her experience of being appointed to Google’s advisory council, which was intended to guide the company in the responsible development of artificial intelligence. The council was quickly disbanded after intense ideological protests.
  • The British government isn’t the only entity trying to undermine voters’ wishes. The Independence Institute shares examples of state ballot measures that were overturned by state governments in order to preserve their power.
  • Want to help Iowa’s most vulnerable citizens? Auditing Medicaid might be a good start. Iowans for Tax relief uses examples from other states to illustrate why Iowa should be proactive about identifying mistakes and fraud to cut down on waste.
  • Highlighting examples of Michigan residents hurt under the state’s current civil asset forfeiture rules, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy makes the case for forfeiture limits.
  • Mississippi has joined Arizona in passing proactive donor privacy legislation. The Mississippi Center for Public Policy argues other states need to step up to protect their citizens’ Freedom of Speech.
  • Nevada’s Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) is still fighting a Supreme Court decision in favor of the Nevada Policy Research Institute. The decision requires PERS to turn over public pension records. NPRI says PERS’ resistance demonstrates why public records law should include a penalty for those who break it.
  • Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs was featured by the Daily Wire for its pro-Electoral College project, Save Our States. The project works in states across the country to educate the public and lawmakers about the importance of the Electoral College.
  • A recent national report ranks Louisiana last for the quality of public services provided to residents. The Pelican Institute says the report exemplifies how “government spending often doesn’t equal great outcomes for residents.”
  • The Wyoming Liberty Group appeared on local talk radio to discuss their research examining education spending in Wyoming and whether funding is following students into the classroom or being wasted on bureaucracy.