Announcements
The Americans for Tax Reform released a coalition letter with 52 groups urging Congress to oppose codifying most-favored-nation drug pricing.
The Goldwater Institute launched a $300,000 American Civics Initiative aimed at teaching U.S. founding principles.
The John Locke Foundation found strong support for intradistrict open enrollment in North Carolina’s K–12 public schools, with 78.8 percent of voters in favor.
Kansas Policy Institute’s Kansas School Board Resource Center is becoming a trusted partner for Kansas school boards and superintendents, helping boards broaden their options and choose candidates who are truly aligned with student needs.
The MacIver Institute noted that DHS selected Public Partnerships LLC as the fiscal agent for the IRIS program, despite the firm’s checkered past and potential conflicts of interest.
Nevada Policy announced the appointment of Kaeley Cook as President, succeeding John Tsarpalas, who transitions to President Emeritus.
Supporters of the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act, Pacific Research Institute noted, are seeking to gather signatures to place a one-time 5% tax on billionaire wealth on the November ballot.
The Pioneer Institute issued a statement from Executive Director Jim Stergios criticizing Governor Healey’s opposition to a proposed income tax cut.
AI is rewriting the rules of policy influence, and it’s happening faster than most leaders realize. State Policy Network’s Todd Davidson argues that the advantage will go to the think tanks that become impossible to replace.
Examining tax trends in Fort Worth, Texas Public Policy Foundation reviewed the 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report to analyze property tax levies.
Success Stories
Mississippi: Governor Tate Reeves signed HB3, improving the state’s Certificate of Need rules, praised by Mississippi Center for Public Policy for enhancing free market principles.
Freedom through the Courts: The Latest Litigation Efforts across the Network
The Goldwater Institute filed a friend of the court brief supporting property owners in a case concerning home-sharing regulations in Arkansas federal court.
The Liberty Justice Center is petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to hear its First Amendment case McCaleb v. Long. LJC’s Press Release details the incorrectness of the Sixth Circuit’s decision limiting public and press access to Tennessee’s Judicial Advisory Commission meetings.
Solutions from the States: This Week’s Policy Briefs
The Buckeye Institute issued recommendations to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, advocating for policies to enhance financial stability and promote upward mobility.
The Cardinal Institute pointed out that West Virginia’s hospital policy debate lacks a comprehensive view of financial challenges.
The Independence Institute highlighted emerging energy legislation in Colorado, noting significant bills like SB26-028 that aims to remove wind energy from state goals and HB26-1129 designed to protect homeowners from emission mandates under the Clean Heat Plan.
The Frontier Institute warned that proposals for a statewide sales tax in Montana, such as the one pushed by CAMPS, would ultimately increase the overall tax burden.
Concerns from residents should not hinder the expansion of successful programs, The Mackinac Center noted in their latest analysis on schools of choice.
The Mountain States Policy Center highlighted the only viable method for Montanans to systematically modernize their constitution is through a state convention.
The Mountain States Policy Center found that Idaho’s new education tax credit ultimately saves the state money as students leave the public system.
The Pacific Research Institute emphasized how The BASIC Fund provides crucial scholarships for low-income children, enabling families to access over 250 private schools in the Bay Area.
The Pioneer Institute released a report showing that high-tax Massachusetts experienced a net loss of 182,000 residents over five years, contributing to a troubling brain drain.
The Platte Institute outlined key reforms to reduce regulatory burdens, emphasizing the need for a State-Level REINS Act and an Office of Regulatory Management.
The Sutherland Institute released a new policy report advocating for a constitutional amendment to restore federalism in campaign finance.
The Virginia Institute for Public Policy argued that repealing outdated Certificate of Need laws could lead to improved affordability and access in healthcare.
Tracking Positive Reforms: Updates from Network Affiliates
Wisconsin: The Wisconsin State Senate approved Assembly Joint Resolution 133 on first consideration, a WILL-supported amendment aimed at restoring legislative oversight of administrative rulemaking (Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty).
Policy Watch: What’s Moving in the States
Arizona: Legislation seeking to permanently ban DEI through constitutional reform is advancing to a floor vote in the Arizona House of Representatives (Goldwater Institute).
Arizona: A ballot initiative filed by the state teachers union would add an income cap and new restrictions to Arizona’s school choice program, potentially removing 15% of current participants (Goldwater Institute).
Colorado: A broad coalition filed a ballot measure to enshrine the public’s right to know government affairs in the state constitution, overturning a 2024 law that exempted lawmakers from open meetings requirements (Independence Institute).
Louisiana: Governor Landry asked the Legislature to expand the LA Gator school choice program.
Massachusetts: Governor Healey opposed a proposed cut in the personal income tax that would put an average of $1,300 back into people’s pockets (Pioneer Institute).
Michigan: Lawmakers introduced a housing reform package to ease zoning regulations and increase housing supply (Mackinac Center for Public Policy).
Michigan: Governor Whitmer proposed $800 million in new taxes on smokers, vapers, gamblers, and online advertisers in her final budget plan (Mackinac Center for Public Policy).
Oklahoma: The state is considering a measure to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour.
South Carolina: Lawmakers are considering a bill to ban grading floors in public schools (Palmetto Promise Institute).
Texas: Governor Abbott promoted his five-point property tax reform plan (Texas Public Policy Foundation).
Virginia: Lawmakers are advancing multiple energy bills that would raise electricity rates for all ratepayers (Thomas Jefferson Institute).
Washington: The state Senate passed a 9.9% income tax on earnings above $1 million, sending it to the House for debate (Washington Policy Center).
Jobs in the Network
Development Associate — Young Americans for Liberty (Remote)
Program Associate — Moving Picture Institute (Remote)
Senior Editor and Director of Publications — Do No Harm (Remote)
Policy News from the States
Topics:
K-12 Education
What are this session’s options for curbing the chronic absenteeism crisis?
American Experiment
Supported in 1997, why not now too?
American Experiment
North Dakota pioneers Lead Teacher Registered Apprenticeships
American Experiment
New tool tracks K-12 staffing changes by district
American Experiment
School levy tax credits reward big spenders at the expense of frugal districts
Badger Institute
Aaron Rice: Defending the Constitution in Uniform and in Court
Empower Mississippi
Goldwater Launches $300K Landmark American Civics Initiative
Goldwater Institute
Senate Bill 1317 — Education, regional service centers (+3)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
House Bill 634 — Funds distributed by dept of ed (0)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Senate Bill 1288 — Idaho high-needs student fund (-2)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
House Bill 622 — Idaho digital learning academy (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
The Outstater
Indiana Policy
Low-Turnout Election, Long-Term Taxes: What’s at Stake on March 3
ITR Foundation
Florida Politics: Anastasios Kamoutsas Curbs Double Counting in K-12 Scholarships
James Madison Institute
Artificial Intelligence
John Locke Foundation
Red states struggle to deliver pro-American history in schools
John Locke Foundation
NC schools that beat the odds: it’s time to get noticed
John Locke Foundation
Progress slows in fixing the school absenteeism problem
John Locke Foundation
Nearly 11,000 Idaho students are now signed up for state’s parental choice tax credit
Mountain States Policy Center
Ready to celebrate America 250? Sign up for “We the Students” Civics Bowl
Mountain States Policy Center
A Roadmap for States to Build High-Quality Online Education
Pioneer Institute
Center Launches K-12 Student Video Contest to Celebrate America’s 250th Birthday #America250RI
Rhode Island Freedom
Early Literacy Reform Advances in the House
Show-Me Institute
Teachers’ Unions Get Desperate
Show-Me Institute
SBOE Workgroups Announced: The Final Fight for Texas History
Texas Public Policy Foundation
The Pioneering Spirit of Microschools
Virginia Institute
HB355: The Public Education System’s “Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing”
Virginia Institute
WILL Supports Teacher Bill of Rights
Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
Energy and Environment
Minnesota electricity prices still more expensive than most states
American Experiment
What Will California Gas Prices Do in 2026?
California Policy Center
Trump ‘buries’ Obama climate policy
John Locke Foundation
Kansas City Reverses Costly Energy Code Legislation
Show-Me Institute
Earth to Government: When Red Tape Sends Innovation to the Final Frontier
The Pelican Institute for Public Policy
Your Electricity Bill is the General Assembly’s New Favorite Piggy Bank
Thomas Jefferson Institute
Connecticut’s Proposed Climate Superfund Would Centralize Authority — and Raise Cost Questions
Yankee Institute
Healthcare
Minnesota faces loss of $2 billion in federal Medicaid funding if legislature fails to act on fraud
American Experiment
House Bill 592 — Patient immigration status data (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
The Grasping Hand of the Welfare State: Medicaid and Rural Health Transformation
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Senate Bill 1294 — Infant hearing loss screening (-3)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Drop ‘Bigger Subsidies’ Narrative for Better Insurance Options
Pacific Research Institute
States should think twice before embracing single-payer
Pacific Research Institute
The Case Against SB 269
Virginia Institute
Housing Affordability
Crucial Badger-supported housing bill passes through Senate
Badger Institute
More local food starts with housing
Grassroot Institute
2025 data is in: Four straight years of unaffordable assessed valuation hikes. Where’s the relief?
Kansas Policy Institute
Michigan Lawmakers Introduce Housing Reform Bills
Mackinac Center
The Fast Track Permits Act could make housing more affordable and attainable in Wyoming
Mountain States Policy Center
Legislators look at local zoning rules blocking education, child care & home businesses
The Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
Opinion: The “14-Day Trap”
Virginia Institute
Testimony in Opposition to SB 151
Yankee Institute
Connecticut’s Latest Housing “Reform” Continues to Erode Local Control — Without Solving Affordability
Yankee Institute
Jobs and State Economies
Walz’s $10 MILLION Anti-ICE Handout
American Experiment
What can Minnesotans expect from this legislative session?
American Experiment
California High-Speed Rail at a Crossroads
California Policy Center
Credit Card Price Controls Aren’t a Shortcut to Affordability
Goldwater Institute
House Bill 671 — Sales tax, rebate, developers (0)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
House Bill 637 — Gold and silver, legal tender (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Amazon Fresh cuts 1,545 Illinois jobs in January
Illinois Policy Institute
VALLAS: Don’t be fooled by Pritzker’s boasts of population gains
Illinois Policy Institute
The Outstater
Indiana Policy
The Cost of an Unforgiving Compliance System
ITR Foundation
Spanberger more radical than she let on in campaign
John Locke Foundation
Economic Updates Suggest Kansas Can Lead
Kansas Policy Institute
Make Michigan competitive again
Mackinac Center
Legislature’s Anti-ICE Measures Would Bring Unintended Consequence of Betraying California’s Veterans
Pacific Research Institute
Price controls won’t save credit card borrowers
Pacific Research Institute
Reducing Red Tape: Advancing Economic Liberty and Accountability In Nebraska
Platte Institute
Research Note: Updates in Regulatory Restraint
Platte Institute
Another Step for Improving Missouri’s Licensing Regime
Show-Me Institute
State Budgets
Lawmakers split on how to keep WisEye broadcasting
Badger Institute
We Can’t Afford to Trim Your Trees, but We Can Hire Lobbyists
Beacon Center of Tennessee
Mamdani Gets an Important Tax Fact Wrong
Empire Center
Waste watch: Illinois uses temporary federal aid to fund ongoing social programs
Illinois Policy Institute
Pritzker proposes record-setting $56 billion budget
Illinois Policy Institute
Illinois’ increased revenue because of federal economy, not state lawmakers
Illinois Policy Institute
Waste watch: Illinois spends $4.4M on podcast, music studios
Illinois Policy Institute
Illinois at risk of losing $700M in SNAP funding from high error rate
Illinois Policy Institute
KCCI Investigates: What to consider as local government plans FY 2027 budgets
ITR Foundation
Lawmakers Across the Country Push Firm Limits on Property Taxes
ITR Foundation
Lawmakers should reject sales tax holidays
Mackinac Center
Voters can lower their own property taxes under Michigan rules
Mackinac Center
The rule of law takes a hit in Washington state with unconstitutional income tax vote
Mountain States Policy Center
Missouri Doesn’t Have To Be Kansas
Show-Me Institute
The Lesson from Kansas—and the Question for Missouri
Show-Me Institute
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of Austin
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of Dallas
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of San Antonio
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of Houston
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of El Paso
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Presidents’ Day: Two and a Half Centuries of Leadership—and the Limits That Sustain It
The Pelican Institute for Public Policy
Y It Matters: Why Process Protects People
Yankee Institute
Workplace Freedom
Illinois at near record-low union membership in 2025
Illinois Policy Institute
Public sector workers’ rights would be strengthened under new Wyoming bill
Mountain States Policy Center
Other
Could the 2026 session deliver long-overdue childcare licensing reform?
American Experiment
‘We have a problem…’
American Experiment
A week after urging supporters to harass legislators, DFL opposes ban on protests at private homes
American Experiment
The habeas contempt
American Experiment
DFLers open legislative session with proposal to make Minnesota a sanctuary state
American Experiment
79th Feeding Our Future defendant charged
American Experiment
Dueling habeas and 57 lbs. of meth
American Experiment
Arizona Supreme Court Weighs Jury Rights in the Administrative State
Goldwater Institute
When “American Studies” Can’t Say Anything Good About America
Goldwater Institute
Senate Bill 1292 — Foster parents, training (0)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Senate Bill 1302 — Single countywide highway districts (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Senate Bill 1301 — Licensed brewers, sales (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Senate Bill 1299 — Digital ID, limitations (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Senate Bill 1296 — Criminal trespass, church (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
House Bill 615 — Disturbing the peace, churches (+1)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
House Bill 638 — Presidential primary (-2)
Idaho Freedom Foundation
Franke: Daylight Saving Folly
Indiana Policy
Documenting Biden’s ‘quiet amnesty’ for 1 million illegals
John Locke Foundation
More on birthright citizenship
John Locke Foundation
Newsom admits overseas that Trump is no existential threat
John Locke Foundation
New role for disinformation board backer concerns GOP senators
John Locke Foundation
Risky business
John Locke Foundation
Leftists’ disturbing embrace of violence as justified
John Locke Foundation
Let the cameras roll: Idaho’s important step toward improved transparency
Mountain States Policy Center
An Evening with Jason Riley
Pacific Research Institute
‘Prove it’ isn’t an insult. It’s a standard.
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Fear Porn About AI Dominance Follows The Covid Tyrants’ Playbook
Texas Public Policy Foundation
The Elites Weaponizing Life: A Brave New World of Surrogacy and Gene Selection
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Government in the Shadows: Gov. Evers, AG Kaul, DPI and Other Officials Failing to Comply with Public Records Law
The Institute for Reforming Government
The Network in the News
In The Hill, The Buckeye Institute’s Rea S. Hederman Jr. praised federal efforts to hold states accountable for mismanagement and fraud in welfare spending.
In The Mercury, the Commonwealth Foundation’s Megan Martin points out Pennsylvania’s economy will grow when Harrisburg gets out of the way.
In the New York Post, the Empire Center’s Bill Hammond highlights how Governor Hochul continues to bribe Big Health with reckless Medicaid spending.
In the Independent Record, the Frontier Institute’s Kendall Cotton highlights some of the problems with sales tax proposals that grow government.
In the Washington Examiner, the Goldwater Institute’s Timothy Sandefur highlights a case now pending in the Arizona Supreme Court that could restore long-neglected legal protections for hardworking entrepreneurs.
In The Center Square, Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation’s John Hendrickson reflects on the inspiration of President George Washington.
In his recent column, John Hood highlights some of the consequence of our worsening fiscal mess.
In the Daily Herald, the Libertas Institute’s Olivia Michiels considers solutions to Utah’s housing crisis.
In his column for The Detroit News, the Mackinac Center’s Mike Reitz outlines 7 habits of highly civil people.
In The Center Square, the Mountain States Policy Center’s Jason Mercier notes the rule of law its taking a hit in Washington state with the unconstitutional income tax vote.
