Announcements
On their recent podcast, Center of the American Experiment’s Grace and Kathryn speak with Rep. Harry Niska about the recent Minnesota tragedy.
The Freedom Foundation’s Washington outreach team is helping the state’s public employees by sharing a feature in the fine print found on nearly every union member’s membership agreement to help give public employees a second chance to opt out of union dues.
The John Locke Foundation released a new video in their “A Better Carolina” series.
The Independence Institute held their introduction luncheon for the Future Leaders internship program.
The Boston Policy Institute together with Pioneer Institute announced the launch of Boston DataLabs, an online platform designed to empower Boston residents, journalists, researchers, and policymakers with clear, accessible insights into the city’s payroll and budget.
The Yankee Institute highlighted what happened in the Connecticut General Assembly’s 2025 session.
Freedom through the Courts: The Latest Litigation Efforts across the Network
Taxpayers in Yuma, Arizona, have been paying an illegal property tax for years—and now, the Goldwater Institute is fighting for their rights in the Arizona Court of Appeals (Goldwater Institute)
A federal court has struck down Kansas’s warrantless inspection regime as unconstitutional, ruling in favor of Kansas Justice Institute clients Scott Johnson and Harlene Hoyt. This important decision affirms that the Fourth Amendment protects private property owners from unannounced government searches—even when tied to occupational licensing.
On June 16, the Liberty Justice Center filed an amicus brief with the US Supreme Court in Chiles v. Salazar, a lawsuit challenging a Colorado law that limits free speech of mental health professionals. This is the second amicus brief LJC has filed on behalf of licensed professional counselor Kaley Chiles.
The Mackinac Center for Public Policy has voluntarily dismissed a lawsuit against Flint Community Schools after the district agreed to comply with Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act and release public records dealing with school administration.
WILL sued the Trump Administration’s Department of Agriculture (USDA) over several discriminatory programs that deny financial assistance to farmers based on race and sex.
Success Stories
Louisiana: The state passed the REINS (Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny) Act (Pelican Institute).
Texas: The governor signed several property tax relief measures into law, setting the stage for a $10 billion tax cut to take effect later this year, assuming voters approve related constitutional amendments in November (Texas Public Policy Foundation).
Solutions from the States: This Week’s Policy Briefs
As Ohio’s Budget Conference Committee works on Ohio’s biennial budget and analyzes some hotly-contested issues, The Buckeye Institute released Keep, Cut, Change, its recommendations for which version of the budget—the governor’s, House, or Senate—lawmakers should adopt and what should be cut or changed.
A new report released by Center of the American Experiment warns that the environmental costs of wind, solar, and battery storage are routinely underestimated in public policy discussions, while the benefits of conventional energy sources such as nuclear, natural gas, oil, and coal are increasingly ignored.
A new Common Sense Institute report finds that Oregon is not building enough housing to keep up with current or future demand.
The pension plan covering most New York City government agencies, including the City’s subway system, had 70 members with pension payments of at least $200,000 last year, almost quadrupling 2019’s tally of 19, according to new data posted at SeeThroughNY.net, the Empire Center’s transparency website.
The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii released a paper that examines how state lawmakers could improve healthcare access and outcomes in the islands by allowing local patients to receive medical care via telehealth from providers licensed and located in other US states, districts or territories.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation highlighted how Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) can support Texas’ CTE-heavy education system.
Tracking Positive Reforms: Updates from Network Affiliates
Michigan: The Michigan House Republicans passed a bill to increase transparency for state earmarks (Mackinac Center).
Wisconsin: Lawmakers advanced a proposal that would decrease the tax rate on a lot of income from 5.3 percent to 4.4 percent (Badger Institute)
Policy News from the States
Topics:
K-12 Education
Want Better Schools? Healthy Competition Is The Difference
Alaska Policy Forum
Jefferson High School’s Dual Enrollment Dilemma
Cascade Policy Institute
New York’s K-12 Problem
Commonwealth Foundation
Two Dozen School Districts Are Returning to the Polls for Budget Revotes
Commonwealth Foundation
Let’s Start at the Beginning: Vouchers, Tax Credit Scholarships and ESAs
Frontier Institute
Nevada’s Education Spending is High, But Results Are Low: What’s Going Wrong?
Nevada Policy Research Institute
The Changing Landscape of Standardized Testing in Massachusetts
Pioneer Institute
What Nebraska Can Learn from the Mississippi Miracle in Education
Platte Institute
How State Leaders Prioritize Vulnerable Students
Sutherland Institute
Energy and Environment
Net Zero Just Isn’t Happening
Mackinac Center
The Supreme Court Reins In the Environmental Review Process
Washington Policy Center
Red Ink For Red Cups: State Brews Up Wasteful Program To Promote Reusable Coffee Cups
Washington Policy Center
Healthcare
Courage On Medicaid In The Past Helps Wisconsin Now
Badger Institute
Plan To Cover Mental Health Program Would Create New Bureaucracy, Raise Taxes & Costs
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
The Left’s Latest Scare Campaign Over Medicaid
MacIver Institute
Housing Affordability
n/a
Jobs and State Economies
Without Legislative Change, Dwindling Ranks Of Young Accountants Will Flee Wisconsin
Badger Institute
When New York City Tried Local Income Taxes They Accelerated Its Bankruptcy
Center of the American Experiment
The Illegitimate Pushback Against Sheetz In Michigan
Mackinac Center
‘Make it in Michigan’ isn’t making it
Mackinac Center
Washington’s New Digital Ad Sales Tax: Unconstitutional, Unfair, And Economically Unsound
Mountain States Policy Center
Does Oklahoma Need A Cosmetology Board?
OCPA
Disaster Looms with California’s High Unemployment
Pacific Research Institute
Licensing Reviews: Agriculture and Banking Committees
Platte Institute
Washington’s CO2 Tax Jumps 16% In Just Three Months To About 46 Cents Per Gallon
Washington Policy Center
State Budgets
Pritzker Oks $237M In Partisan Pork As Part Of Record Illinois Budget
Illinois Policy Institute
Denver’s Budget Mess—The Cost Of “Progressive” Policies
Independence Institute
New Taxes, New Spending: Maine’s Part 2 Budget Adds Burdens Without Reform
Maine Policy Institute
Raising the SALT Cap in the OBBB: A Blue State Bailout?
Palmetto Promise Institute
How To Get Real Income Tax Relief In South Carolina
South Carolina Policy Council
Workplace Freedom
The Public-Sector Union Behind L.A. Immigration Agitation
California Policy Center
Other
High-Speed Rail Authority’s Rebuttal to Trump Administration is Well Argued but Makes Questionable Claims
California Policy Center
Arizona Court Makes Clear: Cities Cannot Pass the Buck on Homeless Encampments
Goldwater Institute
Jones Act Keeps U.S. Lagging In Global Shipbuilding Output
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
A Blue Wave Is Helping Rock The Boat On Jones Act Reform
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
When GOP Gets Just 14% Of State Legislation, Illinois Has A Legislative Map Problem
Illinois Policy Institute
Rule Of Law Requires Limits On Governors, Presidents
Mackinac Center
Americans Still Have The Freedom To Choose Healthy Lifestyles
Mountain States Policy Center
Free Markets Require Free Minds—And That Starts With Reading
OCPA
The Network in the News
In The Columbus Dispatch, The Buckeye Institute offers a better plan to address Ohio’s high property taxes—local government reform.
In the Courier Journal, the Bluegrass Institute’s John C. Mozena notes Kentucky’s elected officials may be making some dumb decisions with taxpayer dollars when it comes to data-center subsidies.
In the Daily Caller News Foundation, the Center of the American Experiment’s Isaac Orr notes Trump’s EPA has cleaned up Biden’s blackout blunder.
In The Federalist, FGA’s Madeline Malisa notes New York City could sleepwalk its way into electing a socialist mayor, thanks to ranked-choice voting.
At National Review, FGA’s Paige Terryberry and Addison Scherler point out Republican work requirements are modest—and empowering.
At Townhall, the Independence Institute’s Rob Natelson considers the Supreme Court’s decision in the “ghost gun” case.
In The Wall Street Journal, the Independent Institute’s Judy Shelton explains how the Federal Reserve fuels fiscal profligacy.
In the Chicago Tribune, Illinois Policy Institute’s Matt Paprocki notes Michael Madigan has left Illinoisans with a corrupt political system he refined.
In the Chicago Tribune, Illinois Policy Institute’s Paul Vallas argues Chicago must reform how it handles expensive police misconduct lawsuits.
The John Locke Foundation’s Jon Sanders was published in Townhall on energy policy.
In a Detroit News column, Mackinac Center’s Michael Reitz suggests that, as innovation transformed the movie industry, reimagining the delivery system of education, employee benefits, and permitting could lead to major improvements.
In The News Tribune, the Mountain States Policy Center’s Sebastian Griffin points out Washington’s new digital ad sales tax is unfair and unconstitutional.
In his recent column, the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs’ Jonathan Small notes there’s no need for tuition increases at Oklahoma colleges and universities.
At RealClearHealth, the Pacific Research Institute’s Wayne Winegarden highlights how Medicare’s restrictive coverage policy is limiting Alzheimer’s patients’ access to approved treatments.
In the Washington Examiner, the Pacific Research Institute’s Sally Pipes notes we shouldn’t believe the CBO’s spin on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
In the New Mexico Sun, the Rio Grande Foundation’s Marina Herrera highlights several factors that contribute to Arizona’s growth and success compared to New Mexico.
In InsideSources, Sutherland Institute’s Nic Dunn highlights what both sides are missing about Medicaid work requirements.
In The Federalist, the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Robert Henneke points out that the American economy is still strong.
In the Orlando Sentinel, The James Madison Institute’s William Mattox notes that for the first time in state history, a majority of Florida’s K-12 students are now enrolled in an education option chosen by their parents.
