By: Camille Walsh

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

  • Following the success of helping more than 60,000 public-sector members leave their union on the West Coast, the Freedom Foundation is opening up operations in Ohio. “I’m excited to officially announce we are open for business in the state of Ohio,” said Aaron Withe, Freedom Foundation’s National Director. “Our mission is to limit the undue influence of government unions over our political system, and our full-scale campaign seeks to inform every single public employee of their right to opt out of union membership and cease paying union dues.”
  • William Smith, Communications Director at the Garden State Initiative, is running for Morris Plains Borough Council in New Jersey.
  • Tom Kamenick, a former counsel for the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, founded a law firm specifically to handle open records cases in the state.

Success Stories

  • The Freedom Foundation won a lawsuit at the Washington Supreme Court in a 5-4 ruling regarding a public records request. A win for transparency, the Court ruled that state employee birth dates are public record. The case was prompted in 2016, when unions filed motions to block disclosure of public records to the Freedom Foundation.
  • Thanks to the Mississippi Justice Institute and the Institute for Justice, new regulations will allow vegan and vegetarian food companies to continue using meat or meat product terms on their labels in Mississippi. In July, the Mississippi Justice Institute and IJ brought a First Amendment lawsuit against the state of Mississippi concerning proposed regulations that would have banned plant-based foods from using meat product terms like “burger,” “bacon,” and “hot dog” on their packaging.
  • A federal appeals court ruled against the University of Michigan—and in favor of Speech First—by challenging the school’s speech code and Bias Response Team as vague and overly broad. The court stated that while the Bias Response Team is not able to punish students directly, it may still have powers that could limit free expression on campus. This lawsuit is another example of a growing movement to hold universities accountable and restore First Amendment freedoms on college campuses in America.
  • Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has named Yankee Institute’s website a silver winner in the W³ Awards for 2019. Judges based decisions on creativity, usability, navigation, functionality, visual design, and ease of use.

Research & Initiatives

  • The American Council of Trustees and Alumni launched its inaugural State Outreach Project. The project will include a series of mailings to over 1,000 state legislators on education committees that highlight efforts taken by states across the country to meet the challenges facing higher education.
  • The Beacon Center of Tennessee released new research on reforming the state’s public assistance programs. The research examines who is currently receiving support in Tennessee, and more importantly, why. The report also considers what changes can be made to remove barriers for Tennesseans to successfully transition to prosperity.
  • The Capital Research Center testified before the Pennsylvania state house on redistricting and independent commissions. CRC rejected the idea that states using independent commissions to draw Congressional districts end up more “fair” than states that draw their districts under a legislative, judicial, or politician-commission system.
  • The Garden State Initiative analyzed the latest job numbers released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. GSI highlighted how New Jersey lost 4,100 jobs in the professional and business services sector in September.
  • The Institute for Justice launched a new case against the city of Zion, Illinois for its disregard of tenants’ Fourth Amendment rights. Zion enacted a rental inspection ordinance that allows authorities to search homes without a warrant. If tenants or landlords resist, the city can fine landlords up to $750 per day or even revoke the right to rent property altogether.
  • The Nevada Policy Research Institute argued the real problem with Nevada’s education system isn’t a lack of spending, it’s the lack of accountability. NPRI cited the evaluation systems used by the Clark County School District. More than 100 district schools have for years received failing grades from the state, but school officials claim the district hasn’t had a single ineffective principal or administrator for at least the past four years.
  • As Maryland lawmakers consider more than $3 billion in tax increases to pay for K-12 education, the Maryland Public Policy Institute challenged the state education monopoly’s lackluster record in an op-ed in The Baltimore Sun.
  • The Pacific Legal Foundation’s quarterly magazine, Sword & Scales, featured an article that outlined the moral virtues of capitalism. PLF explained why it’s capitalism—not socialism—that is the moral system.
  • The Texas Public Policy Foundation released new research on the myth of state disinvestment in higher education, finding that funding has been relatively stable for 38 years.
  • The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Election Commission (WEC), on behalf of three Wisconsin voters, that argues the state agency is failing to follow state law on critical procedures that maintain accurate voter rolls. WEC illegally altered policies that require specific action with regard to the eligibility of voter registrations for those who have changed their address.
  • Young America’s Foundation held its inaugural High School Free Enterprise Leaders Conference, where students learned about the principles of free enterprise and how to advance freedom’s principles among their peers at school. 

Think Tanks in the News

  • After Bluff City Law, a show that receives taxpayer funds to film in Memphis, was cancelled due to poor ratings, the Beacon Center urged lawmakers to get rid of film incentives.
  • As recent trends show blacks and Hispanics’ increasing support for charter schools, the Civitas Institute considered whether this would insert a wedge in the Democratic Party, whose politicians do not typically support school choice. The California Policy Center also discussed school choice, highlighting the story of parents who fought the California Teachers Association to turn Palm Lane Elementary School into a non-union, independent public charter school. In just one year, students are showing significant improvements in academic achievement.
  • The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue made a new rule requiring corporations earning at least $500,000 in annual sales without a physical presence in the state to begin filing a Pennsylvania corporate net income tax return. The Commonwealth Foundation questioned the motivation behind the decision.
  • In an op-ed for the Washington Examiner, the Illinois Policy Institute considered the recent Chicago Teachers Union strike, arguing that it appears to be a power play intended to establish dominance over a new mayor. The piece outlined the teachers union’s demands, and pointed out how all of this is a result of Illinois law that allows these strikes to happen. The United Auto Workers are also on strike, demanding pay raises among other requests from General Motors. Christopher Douglas, who sits on the board of directors at the Mackinac Center, explained why the strike probably isn’t worth it in an op-ed for CNN Business. 
  • The John Locke Foundation commented on a bill that would cut the North Carolina franchise tax while simultaneously loosening rules in the state’s film grants program. JLF noted that they don’t see the governor signing this bill, based on previous comments he’s made on corporate tax cuts.
  • The Kansas Policy Center’s work on income inequality was featured in an article for WIBW News. KPI outlined the factors that explain who gets wealth and who does not in Kansas, including the fact that low-income Kansans are four times as likely to not work than high income households.
  • After Wayne State University announced their free college tuition program for Detroit students, the Mackinac Center recommended the university tie these dollars to a student making demonstrable progress toward completing a degree. The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty also touched on education this week, breaking down what Elizabeth Warren’s vision for K-12 education in America will mean for Wisconsin specifically. WILL says Warren’s plan calls for massive spending increases, more federal intrusion in the classroom, an assault on school choice, and overturning collective bargaining reform laws.
  • Several state think tanks contributed to the conversation on Medicaid reform this week. As Mississippi lawmakers are holding hearings to advocate for Medicaid expansion, the Mississippi Center for Public Policy promoted community-based solutions such as charity care clinics. The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs explained why expanding Medicaid results in increased federal debt. The John Locke Foundation commented on North Carolina’s rollout of Medicaid managed care, and The Center Square cited a Pelican Institute report that found more than 1,600 individuals earning six-figure incomes enrolled in Medicaid after the Affordable Care Act expansion.
  • Pacific Research Institute president and CEO Sally Pipes exposed the flaws in Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s claim that “Medicare for All Who Want It” would not raise taxes on the middle class. In The Orange County Register, Pipes explained why Medicare for All Who Want It is no different than Medicare for All.
  • The Reason Foundation criticized a piece in The Wall Street Journal that suggested teachers should give up their traditional pensions. Pensions themselves are not the problem, it’s pension plan design, says Reason.

Events & Opportunities

  • The Goldwater Institute’s Annual Dinner will take place on November 8 at the JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. Featured guest speakers include Dan Crenshaw and Jason Chaffetz, honoring ALS Survivor and Right to Try Champion Matt Bellina.