Announcements
Alabama Policy Institute released the 2025 Blueprint for Alabama, a 30-point conservative policy plan divided into categories based on three pillars: free markets, limited government, and strong families. The Institute also announced the launch of the ALDOGE initiative, which is designed to address long-standing issues within Alabama state government, including regulatory overreach, lack of transparency, and inefficiency in government expenditures.
The Buckeye Institute released, in partnership with the Fraser Institute, the Economic Freedom of North America 2024 report, which ranks all states and provinces in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, as well as the US territory of Puerto Rico based on economic freedom, measured by government spending, taxation, and labor-market freedom.
Empower Mississippi hosted its 4th Annual Empower Solutions Summit, an event that featured Mississippi leaders like Lieutenant Governor Delbert Hosemann and Speaker of the House Jason White, as well as nationally acclaimed comic Kyle Mann, Editor-in-Chief of The Babylon Bee.
Foundation for Government Accountability released a recap of five massive state wins in 2024.
Kansas Policy Institute identified key challenges and opportunities to its economic freedom as the state government prepares for its legislative session.
Liberty Justice Center President Jacob Huebert discussed the proposed federal TikTok ban and the danger it poses to Americans’ free speech rights in an interview with iHeartRadio’s Scott Sloan on Demand.
Mountain States Policy Center released the results of its 2024 Idaho Poll, which provides critical information regarding the state’s top policy issues ahead of the upcoming legislative session and also released its policy wish list for Idaho’s 2025 legislative session, which focuses on education, taxes, budget and spending, transparency, healthcare, and energy policy. The Center also announced that former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey will speak at the upcoming Education Choice Policy Forum at the Idaho state capitol on the first day of the 2025 legislative session.
People United for Privacy Foundation and National Taxpayers Union Foundation filed comments with the Judicial Conference explaining that a proposal to force amicus filers to disclose their donors would violate First Amendment rights.
R Street Institute hosted a special Repeal Day virtual event which featured a discussion of Ream v. US Department of Treasury, The Buckeye Institute’s case challenging the federal government’s ban on home distilling.
Reason Foundation released a new tool which provides debt and spending insights for the 100 largest municipalities, counties, and school districts in America and all 50 states for fiscal years 2020, 2021, and 2022.
Sutherland Institute announced that A. Scott Anderson, former president and CEO of Zions Bank, has accepted a seat on its Board of Directors.
Washington Policy Center issued a statement on the latest proposed state budget, highlighting the self-inflicted wound of overspending and how this has led to a budget shortfall, in spite of record revenue collections that have only increased.
Freedom through the Courts: The Latest Litigation Efforts across the Network
California Policy Center filed an amicus brief supporting the City of Huntington Beach’s petition for rehearing en banc in the City’s challenge to California’s unconstitutional housing mandates.
Frontier Institute issued a statement expressing disappointment and calling for elected lawmakers to work to reduce uncertainty arising from Montana’s environmental permitting practices following the Montana Supreme Court’s decision in Held v. Montana.
Institute for Free Speech filed a suit challenging a recently passed measure that restricts Mainers’ fundamental First Amendment political speech rights in contradiction of unanimous federal court precedent.
Liberty Justice Center made oral arguments before a California court in its lawsuit challenging AB 1955, legislation that aims to prohibit parental notification policies across the state. The Center is also taking the fight for free speech to the Supreme Court. After filing an emergency petition on Monday urging the US Supreme Court to take up the constitutional challenges to the proposed federal TikTok ban, the Court granted certiorari on Wednesday and set a hearing in the case for January 10. The Center also filed multiple amicus briefs this week, in Chiles v. Salazar, McNutt v. Department of Justice, and Texas Top Cop Shop v. Garland.
Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty filed a complaint with the US Department of Education against the Wauwatosa School District for its plan to shut down the Wauwatosa STEM School, which is currently ranked the fifth-best elementary school in Wisconsin by U.S News and World Report. The district’s racially discriminatory plan also includes phasing out other STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) programs because too many white students use the programs. The Institute also filed a new federal civil rights complaint against the Ohio-based Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center for its discriminatory education, training, and scholarship programs.
Success Stories
Delaware: Four of five members of the Sussex County Council voted to deny a conditional use permit for an offshore wind project which had sparked public outcry, putting the brakes on the project and delivering an early Christmas present to the citizens of Sussex County (Caesar Rodney Institute).
Ohio: In the closing hours of Ohio’s 135th General Assembly, several liberty-minded policies crossed the finish line, including eliminating or reducing a number of occupational licensing requirements, ensuring the suspension of driver’s licenses is related to driving offenses, making it easier for village residents to vote on whether to dissolve their local government, and increasing hospital price transparency (The Buckeye Institute).
Solutions from the States: This Week’s Policy Briefs
The Buckeye Institute outlined the history of national and international nongovernmental organizations, which, disguised as an innocuous Trojan gift horse, present a unique regulatory threat and offers commonsense reforms that lawmakers can adopt to protect Ohioans from the regulations these NGOs propose which are designed to benefit special interests.
Empire Center published a brief that shows how New York’s state workforce has rebounded from pandemic-related declines, with headcount increasing 4% over the past year and surpassing pre-COVID levels in most agencies. Despite these gains, public employee unions continue to push for costly pension and hiring reforms, burdening taxpayers with billions in potential expenses while state lawmakers show little resistance.
Foundation for Government Accountability issued a brief with a strong warning against efforts to expand the authority of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a small agency that has already vastly exceeded its authority.
Mountain States Policy Center released briefs that point out the budget challenges ahead of Washington state legislators and call for licensing reform to provide assistance to veterinarians.
Platte Institute posted a brief on school choice in Nebraska, which points out how choice empowers families to select what is best for them, creates pressure on all schools to improve, and fosters harmony among diverse people.
Washington Policy Center issued briefs that highlight the latest Artificial Intelligence Task Force report from the US House of Representatives and the key takeaways Washington legislators should consider for their own rulemaking, praise the Seattle Times editorial board for recognizing the state spin on the budget shortfall, and outline the next steps for Washington in public education and what can be done to improve outcomes for students.
Tracking Positive Reforms: Updates from Network Affiliates
Oklahoma: It appears that Senate Republicans are now on board for an income tax repeal plan — something that House lawmakers passed in the last session but that did not receive final hearing in the Senate. Stay tuned as these proposals progress (Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs).
South Carolina: The Senate Education Committee’s K-12 Education Subcommittee met to discuss the details of a new bill that Senator Greg Hembree has filed to revise and revive the Education Scholarship Trust Fund program — first steps toward saving school choice in the state (Palmetto Promise Institute).
Virginia: Governor Youngkin proposed extending the increase to the standard deduction, reducing the car tax for low income families, and outlined an Opportunity Scholarship program which would provide $5,000 grants to up to 10,000 low-income students so as to allow them to better afford a school that fits their needs — three welcome priorities which would make for a more prosperous state (Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy).
Nationwide: The Liberty Justice Center and Pelican Institute celebrated a preliminary win in their joint legal challenge to the Biden Administration’s blanket ban on the export of liquid natural gas. Admitting that the ban will likely be overturned when Trump takes office, the Department of Justice filed a motion to halt the legal proceedings.
Policy News from the States
Topics:
K-12 Education
The Gift of New Educational Opportunities
Beacon Center of Tennessee
Why Are Portland School Construction Projects So Expensive?
Cascade Policy Institute
Dakota Bland: Kicked Off the Waitlist
Empower Mississippi
Milwaukee Public Schools’ Credit Takes Hit Over Missing Financial Report
MacIver Institute
Speaking Up on School Choice
Mississippi Center for Public Policy
Poll Finds Oklahoma School-Choice Model Popular Nationwide
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Class-Action Lawsuit Filed Over Bogus Reading Instruction
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
New Poll Shows Americans Committed to Educational Freedom
Palmetto Promise Institute
The Future of the Department of Education with Ginny Gentles
Show-Me Institute
Home-Based Education in 2025: The Numbers and Top Issues
Sutherland Institute
Thumb on the Scale: The Growing Alarm Over ISD Electioneering and What to Do About It
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Taxpayer Protection Project
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Energy and Environment
Is Photovoltaic Power Competitive?
California Policy Center
NERC: MISO at “High” Risk of Blackouts in Normal Peak Conditions
Center of the American Experiment
OKLO Signs Massive New Nuclear Deal, But Not in Minnesota
Center of the American Experiment
To Achieve American Energy Dominance, Trump Must Avoid ‘All-of-the-Above’ Rhetoric
Commonwealth Foundation
At Least the Electric USPS Trucks Didn’t Get Lost in the Mail!
Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
Should California Go Full Steam Ahead on Offshore Wind Farms? Latest Evidence Says No
Pacific Research Institute
Nuclear Energy Is a Bipartisan Solution
Show-Me Institute
Outside Study Confirms Natural Gas Needed to Run Data Centers
Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy
Healthcare
Hospital Price Transparency Is Long Overdue
Foundation for Government Accountability
Medicaid’s Checkup: Part 1
Show-Me Institute
Housing Affordability
Duluth Holds the Line on Property Taxes for First Time in Decade
Center of the American Experiment
Gov. Hobbs’ Illegal Power Grab Exacerbating Arizona’s Housing Crisis
Goldwater Institute
‘Empty Homes’ Tax Deferral Shows Your Voice Matters
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Property Taxes Impact Economic Growth
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Increasing Housing Supply in the Urban Core through Mixed-Use Commercial and Residential
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Jobs and State Economies
If You Didn’t Get a Pay Rise of at Least 2.7% in the Last Year, You Got a Pay Cut
Center of the American Experiment
Permitting Delays for Idaho Mine Leave US Vulnerable to China
Center of the American Experiment
Permitting Reform Stalls Over the Weekend
Center of the American Experiment
Josh Shapiro Must Stand with PA Workers and Support Nippon Deal
Commonwealth Foundation
A Monopoly Is Coming—Steel Yourself for It
Commonwealth Foundation
New Report Challenges Common Claim that ‘Jones Act Jobs’ Have Been Increasing
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Illinois Population Grows in 2024 Despite 56K Residents Leaving for Other States
Illinois Policy
New Hampshire Could Boost Manufacturing Jobs with One Simple Trick: Becoming a Right-to-Work State
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
Kansas’s Economic Freedom: Navigating Challenges and Opportunities
Kansas Policy Institute
Don’t Buy Junk Stocks – Viewing College as an Investment
Libertas Institute
The Market, Not Politics, Should Drive Office Conversions
Pacific Research Institute
A More Effective Safety Net, Not A Basic Income, Will Help Lift People Out of Poverty
Pacific Research Institute
Mapping Mass Migration: New Census Data Shows Continued Out-Migration from Massachusetts to Competitor States
Pioneer Institute
New Mexico Falls Even Further in Economic Freedom of North America Index
Rio Grande Foundation
Public Signals Strong Support for Regulatory Reform
Texas Public Policy Foundation
State Budgets
State Preservation Board Does Historic Pivot on 100 East
Badger Institute
Arrogance, Incompetence, and Big Government: Why “Minnesota Has a Fraud Problem”
Center of the American Experiment
Taxpayer Money Wasted in Fraudulent Minnesota Programs Is Surpassing $1 Billion
Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
Voters Near O’Hare Take Up Unfunded State Mandates
Illinois Policy
Suburban Chicago Voters to Tell State Leaders About Pension Reform Need
Illinois Policy
Holiday Scratch-Off Tickets Surpass $2 Billion in Sales
Illinois Policy
Welcoming Iowa’s New Flat Tax
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
The Truth About Iowa’s Revenue: Tax Cuts Empower Growth, Not Decline
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation
Another Failed “Economic Incentive” Deal
John Locke Foundation
Zoos, Arts, and Parks: How Utah Voters Are Shaping Local Taxes
Libertas Institute
Your Taxes, Your Choice: What Utah’s 2024 Ballot Propositions Mean for You
Libertas Institute
Gov. Mills and the Legislature’s Present to Mainers: A New Payroll Tax
Maine Policy Institute
Study: OU Practices Not Caused by State ‘Disinvestment’
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Three Budget Solutions on Our Christmas List
South Carolina Policy Council
‘Tis the Season for State Agency Wish Lists
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Business Franchise Tax Overview
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Don’t Adjust Legislator Pay for Inflation Without Doing the Same on Taxes
Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy
Yankee Institute Demands Accountability After CSCU Report
Yankee Institute
Workplace Freedom
Even After Rebuke, Weingarten Defends AFT’s Radical Agenda
Freedom Foundation
Washington: Santa Brings Cheery Opt-Out Message to Public Employees
Freedom Foundation
AFSCME Hires Hartford Councilman with History of Sexual Harassment Allegations
Yankee Institute
Other
One Final Story: Those Who Made It All Possible—An Excerpt from “Modern Davids”
Beacon Center of Tennessee
9/11 Reflections
Cardinal Institute
Mail Delivery Complaints Continue as Trump Mulls Privatizing Post Office
Center of the American Experiment
Corruption a Direct Result of One-Party Rule, Inattentive Voters, and Weakened Media
Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
Merry Christmas, Montana!
Frontier Institute
The Lesson from Montana: Stop Judicial Usurpation Before It Becomes Too Late
Independence Institute
The Art of the Deal — A Win-Win Proposal to Save Social Security
Indiana Policy Review Foundation
Protecting Paradise: Cybersecurity in the Sunshine State
James Madison Institute
Hurricane Helene Recovery: This Time Needs to be Different
John Locke Foundation
America Will Continue to Shine On
Mackinac Center
UK’s John Suchet, OBE, on Tchaikovsky, The Nutcracker, & Ballets
Pioneer Institute
Bills to Watch in 2025
South Carolina Policy Council
As Hamilton Said, Judges Must Be ‘Faithful Guardians of the Constitution’
Sutherland Institute
The Network in the News
In the Los Angeles Daily News, California Policy Center’s Will Swaim notes the teacher union swindle in the city of Orange serves as a lesson for all of California.
At RealClearPennsylvania, the Commonwealth Foundation’s Guy Ciarrocchi notes Jan. 20 is too long to wait for inauguration.
In another piece for RealClear, the Commonwealth Foundation’s Elizabeth Stelle highlights Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s push for education reforms.
In The Missoulian, the Frontier Institute’s Kendall Cotton makes the ethical case against property taxes.
In his recent column, the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s Kyle Wingfield highlights some disagreements with the Promise Scholarship and points out that once more adults are arguing about systems, rather than students and their needs.
In the Chicago Tribune, the Illinois Policy Institute’s Paul Vallas notes we need a public safety consent decree that protects Chicagoans.
In his recent column for The Denver Gazette, the Independence Institute’s John Caldara highlights the growing use of flavored nicotine products.
At National Review, Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation’s John Hendrickson highlights Herbert Hoover’s lessons for DOGE.
In the Des Moines Register, Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation’s John Hendrickson highlights how Iowa has become a leader in state fiscal policy thanks to Governor Kim Reynolds.
In Governing, Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation’s John Hendrickson notes Iowa can be a model for property tax reduction.
At National Review, The James Madison Institute’s Edward Longe notes Congress should consider the Florida method for keeping minors safe online.
In the Wall Street Journal, Liberty Justice Center Senior Fellow Mark Janus wrote a letter to the editor about how US Steel’s proposed merger with Nippon Steel would give the United Steelworkers union unprecedented power and a potential monopoly.
In his recent column for The Detroit News, the Mackinac Center’s Mike Reitz encouraged Michigan to curtail the state’s emergency powers.
In The Center Square, the Mountain States Policy Center’s Jason Mercier highlights MSPC’s policy wish list for Idaho’s 2025 legislative session.
In The Center Square, the Mountain States Policy Center’s Chris Cargill points out Washington state’s budget nightmare is its own fault.
In a recent column, the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs’ Jonathan Small notes Oklahoma’s income-tax repeal must be a priority.
In his recent column, the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs’ Jonathan Small notes education policy should maximize educational opportunity for all families to improve academic outcomes across the board.
In The American Spectator, the Pacific Research Institute’s Sally Pipes highlights President Trump’s unlikely healthcare ally.
In her column for Newsmax, the Pacific Research Institute’s Sally Pipes points out that confining veterans to treatment delivered by government-owned and -operated hospitals and treatment centers is misguided.
In the Washington Examiner, the Pacific Research Institute’s Sally Pipes considers why US life expectancy is surprisingly on the rise.
In his recent column, John Hood explains why Medicaid expansion isn’t over.
