Announcements
The Cardinal Institute’s Jessi Troyan discussed occupational licensing on the Mackinac Center’s Overton Window Podcast.
The Mountain States Policy Center released the nation’s first Public School Transparency Index—a tool that compares and contrasts key data from school districts in the state of Idaho.
Kansas Policy Institute published an analysis of school district cash reserves, finding that over $500 million could be tapped to improve student outcomes. KPI also wrote about the Kansas Department of Education maneuvering to reduce performance standards and artificially increase proficiency levels.
Mountain States Policy Center hosted a record-breaking 2025 Spring Dinner at the Coeur d’Alene Resort, which gathered a sellout crowd of more than 600 and featured keynote speaker Judge Jeanine Pirro. At the event, the Center also named Mike Moyle, Idaho’s Speaker of the House, as the recipient of its prestigious Elevation Award. Finally, the Center’s Jason Mercier was featured in Governing’s quote-of-the-day: “Things that happen after midnight: carriages turn back into pumpkins, vampires come out and Washington lawmakers pass massive tax increases.”
Freedom through the Courts: The Latest Litigation Efforts across the Network
Freedom Foundation sued three California unions for deceiving workers and taking dues without consent.
On April 30, the US Supreme Court heard Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond, with the Liberty Justice Center arguing in an amicus brief that the Oklahoma AG’s opposition violates the First Amendment.
OCPA filed a brief in a gender identity case.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Biden administration’s creation of the 624,000-acre Chuckwalla National Monument in January.
WILL, Liberty Justice Center, and Dr. Erica Anderson filed an amicus brief supporting Florida parents in a gender identity case before the 11th Circuit.
Success Stories
Montana: Big Sky Country passed the largest income tax cut in state history (Mountain States Policy Center).
Oklahoma: In a big win for Ohioans and Ohio businesses, the Ohio General Assembly adopted one of the state’s best free-market energy reform bills in more than a quarter of a century (The Buckeye Institute).
Texas: Texas passed a law to strengthen judicial review and rein in burdensome regulations (Goldwater Institute).
West Virginia: West Virginia now allows residents to run low-impact home businesses without costly local permits (Goldwater Institute).
Solutions from the States: This Week’s Policy Briefs
The John Locke Foundation released a report on North Carolina’s agriculture labor shortages.
A new study by the Pacific Research Institute reveals the soaring costs of California’s green energy transition.
A new Palmetto Promise Institute study makes the case for an energy imbalance market in South Carolina.
Pioneer Institute released the 2025 edition of its Tax–Credit Education Scholarship Toolkit, a resource for state policymakers looking to expand educational opportunity through tax–credit scholarship (TCS) programs.
FGA released a report that notes Congress should put an end to Medicaid money laundering by stopping provider tax schemes that inflate federal Medicaid spending.
WILL calls for a “red tape reset” in a new report that examines Wisconsin’s regulatory environment.
Yankee Institute and Mackinac Center released The Green Monster, a report criticizing flaws in Connecticut’s 2025 climate bill H.B. 5004.
Tracking Positive Reforms: Updates from Network Affiliates
Illinois: The state is considering a bill to train Illinois teachers in ‘science of reading’ methods to boost early-grade literacy (Illinois Policy Institute).
Louisiana: Policymakers advanced “One Door” legislation to streamline access to job assistance and public services (Pelican Institute).
Oklahoma: The Senate passed a bill seeking to simplify state regulations and improve efficiency for businesses and residents. Oklahoma also advanced a tax reform plan to simplify brackets and gradually eliminate income tax (OCPA).
Texas: The state is considering a bill to repeal the franchise tax. The Lone Star State is also considering several bills that would help address the housing affordability crisis (Texas Public Policy Foundation).
Wisconsin: Lawmakers are considering a new regulatory reform bill that will limit emergency rules from the governor and state agencies, regularly review Wisconsin’s 160,000 regulations, and limit regulations to one topic at a time (MacIver Institute).
Policy News from the States
Topics:
K-12 Education
Subject by Subject: Wisconsin Districts Face Higher Rates of Teacher Turnover
Badger Institute
From Classroom to Career: How Tennessee is Empowering Students Through Career and Technical Education
Beacon Center of Tennessee
Choice Programs Don’t Function the Same Way
American Experiment
MN Senate No Longer Wants Academic Standards to Be Grade-Level Appropriate
American Experiment
School Choice Program College Success Study
Commonwealth Foundation
Migrant Influx Helps Curb New York’s K-12 Enrollment Decline
Empire Center for Public Policy
Why Georgia is Celebrating Microschool Week
Georgia Public Policy Foundation
Expanding Student Choices Is One of the Best Things a State Can Do
Georgia Public Policy Foundation
Oklahoma Schools Defraud Taxpayers with Bogus ‘Virtual’ Days
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
South Carolinians Should Always Have Access to School Board Meetings!
Palmetto Promise Institute
LA GATOR: 40,000 Louisiana Families Await Funding for A School That Fits
Pelican Institute for Public Policy
Utah Fits All Legal Fight Demonstrates Why We Need Judicial Reform
Sutherland Institute
Energy and Environment
How to Add 10 MAF/yr to California’s Water Supply
California Policy Center
Nuclear Energy Is at Near-Record Support in U.S.
American Experiment
First 100 Days of Energy Policy
American Experiment
Shapiro Price Cap Hike Electricity Bills
Commonwealth Foundation
Why Montana Should Think Twice About Its Proposed Styrofoam Ban
Mountain States Policy Center
The Lone Star State Needs More Electricity: Texas Coal Could Help
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Healthcare
No updates this week.
Housing Affordability
Milwaukee Rents in National Spotlight; Rent Caps not the Solution
Badger Institute
Manitowoc and Builder Bend to Make Houses Attainable
Badger Institute
Chicago’s Housing Red Tape Remains Tangled 1 Year Since Mayor’s Pledge
Illinois Policy Institute
A Uniform Statewide Building Code Would Speed Development Times and Lower Costs
Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy
AB 280’s Rent Control Could Wreck Nevada’s Housing Dreams
Nevada Policy
Seattle’s ‘Social Housing’ Plan Struggles to Get Off the Ground
Pacific Research Institute
Jobs and State Economies
Minnesotans, Say No to an Endless Cycle of Tax Hikes
American Experiment
How to Make Pennsylvania Manufacturing Boom
Commonwealth Foundation
Honolulu Spending Continues Upward Even as Population Declines
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Poll: Taxes No. 1 Issue for Over Half of Illinois Voters, Nearly Half Would Move
Illinois Policy Institute
Chicago Teachers Union Pushes $7.3B in Taxes on Illinoisans
Illinois Policy Institute
Harvest on Hold: North Carolina’s Agriculture Labor Shortages
John Locke Foundation
Washington State Lawmakers Increase the Cost of Driving – Again
Mountain States Policy Center
Montana and Idaho Join the “Record” Tax Cut Club While Washington Imposes a “Historic” Tax Increase
Mountain States Policy Center
AB 530’s Sneaky Gas Tax Would Hurt Nevada
Nevada Policy
Learning from Past Mistakes: Nevada’s Track Record with Stadium Subsidies
Nevada Policy
Standing Still, Falling Behind: Oklahoma Slips in Economic Outlook Ranking
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Mississippi Provides Roadmap for Oklahoma Reform
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Painting a Phony Rosy Picture By Numbers: 7 Reasons the Institute for Policy Studies Gets It So Wrong
Pioneer Institute
State Budgets
Is California Doomed to Repeat Pension History?
California Policy Center
Whatever Happened with Proposition 4?
California Policy Center
DFL Deficit: Minnesota’s State Government Has Been Running a Deficit Since 2024
American Experiment
Pritzker Touts Economic Growth While Proposed Budget Risks It
Illinois Policy Institute
Chicago’s Pension Debt Being Fueled by Heavy, Growing Interest
Illinois Policy Institute
Iowa’s Dependency on Federal Funds: A Growing Concern
ITR Foundation
When Washington Controls the Money, Iowa Families Lose Control
ITR Foundation
Does Increasing State Taxes on the Rich Lead to Greater Wealth?
John Locke Foundation
Kansas Can’t Afford Another Missed Opportunity
Kansas Policy Institute
$500 Million in Cash Reserves Available
Kansas Policy Institute
The Washington State 2025-27 Budget Proposal Is Out and Legislators Are Still Spending Money the State Doesn’t Have
Washington Policy Center
Republicans Drop a Budget Reality Check
Yankee Institute
Workplace Freedom
Best March on Record for California
Freedom Foundation
Censored, Exploited, and Ignored: Why NJ Teachers Are Leaving Their Union in Record Numbers
Freedom Foundation
How Chicago Teachers Union Election Impacts Those Well Past City Limits
Illinois Policy Institute
Other
Testimony to Metro on Proposed Transit Bond
Cascade Policy Institute
Do We Still Need TriMet?
Cascade Policy Institute
Gov. Armstrong’s Controversial Vetoes Draw National Attention
American Experiment
What’s Behind the GDP Numbers?
American Experiment
Is Shapiro More Ambitious Than Loyal?
Commonwealth Foundation
Resolutions a Sign That Legislators Are Listening
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
How Does the Idaho Freedom Index Work?
Idaho Freedom Foundation
It’s Time to Clear the Bar for Attorneys
Mackinac Center for Public Policy
Mississippi is Rising—But Is Your Lawmaker Holding Us Back?
Mississippi Center for Public Policy
Report Finds OSU Medical School Uses DEI in Training
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
The State of AI
Pelican Institute for Public Policy
Trump’s Executive Orders: Bold Action or Unconstitutional Overreach?
Sutherland Institute
Washington State Legislature 2025: That’s a Wrap
Washington Policy Center
The Network in the News
In the New York Post, the Empire Center’s Bill Hammond points out Governor Hochul has only herself to blame for NY’s looming Medicaid crisis.
In The Detroit News, FGA’s Stewart Whitson notes Republicans can easily find waste in Medicaid.
In his recent column, the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s Kyle Wingfield highlights the strong interest in the Georgia Promise Scholarship program.
In the Coastal Courier, the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s J. Thomas Perdue explains what Georgia’s latest legislative session means for taxpayers.
In the Chicago Tribune, the Illinois Policy Institute’s Micky Horstman notes Austin has figured out affordable housing while Chicago postures.
In his recent column, John Hood points out trade uncertainty will hamper growth.
At RealClearMarkets, the Mackinac Center’s Ted Bolema notes the FTC rightly faces an uphill battle in its Meta lawsuit.
In Ruidoso News, the Rio Grande Foundation’s Paul Gessing points out prohibiting housing market technology won’t resolve New Mexico housing shortage.
In The Hill, the Mackinac Center’s Joseph Lehman argues the GOP should take Reagan’s approach when it comes to unions.
