Research and Commentaries
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Cap-and-Trade in Pennsylvania
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Pennsylvania, among other states, is mulling programs that would establish a carbon dioxide cap-and-trade system for the purpose of reducing carbon dioxide emissions, even as the scientific community becomes increasingly skeptical of claims that global -
Virginia Needs Spending Reform, Not Higher Cigarette Taxes
Publication -Research and Commentaries -For years tobacco consumers have been flocking to Virginia to take advantage of the 30 cents-per-pack cigarette tax in order to avoid taxes in Maryland and Washington, DC, where the tax is currently $2.00 per pack. This week Gov. -
Climate Change in the Classroom Education or Indoctrination? Part 2: Scientific Critiques of Global Warming Alarmism
Publication -Research and Commentaries -This Research & Commentary collection contains three articles that provide scientific critiques of the global warming alarmism that appears in Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth. -
Credit Default Swaps
Publication -Research and Commentaries -First offered by JP Morgan in 1997, credit default swaps (CDS) are the most widely used type of credit derivative in the market and an influential force in the financial marketplace (http://www.investopedia.com/articles/optioninvestor/08/cds.asp? -
Film Tax Credits: Do They Work?
Publication -Research and Commentaries -States are increasingly interested in expanding subsidies to the film industry through the use of refundable tax credits and sales tax exemptions. -
Film Tax Credits: Do They Work?
Publication -Research and Commentaries -States are increasingly interested in expanding subsidies to the film industry through the use of refundable tax credits and sales tax exemptions. -
Worker’s Compensation Insurance
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Worker's Compensation insurance is a form of insurance that provides compensation for medical care for employees who are injured in the course of employment. -
Research & Commentary: What A Smoking Ban Would Mean for Michigan
Publication -Research and Commentaries -People often support smoking bans in order to be protected from the nuisance of smoking environments in restaurants, bars, casinos, and other businesses. -
Kansas Can’t Afford A Cigarette Tax Hike
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The Kansas Health Policy Authority’s recommendation to use a 75-cent cigarette tax increase to pay for health costs should be worrisome—not only to smokers, but also to non-smokers and fiscally responsible legislators as well. -
Community Reinvestment Act: The Risk of Unintended Consequences
Publication -Research and Commentaries -As policymakers consider ways to address the current mortgage crisis, it is important to evaluate new proposals with an eye toward their future effects on the economy. -
Defined Contribution vs. Defined Benefit Pensions
Publication -Research and Commentaries -According to the Pew Center on the States, state government employee pension plans nationwide have racked up nearly $360 billion in unfunded pension liabilities. -
Raising New Hampshire’s Cigarette Tax Is Bad Tax Policy
Publication -Research and Commentaries -A 25 percent increase in New Hampshire's cigarette tax, scheduled to go into effect today, has been put on hold until audits can be completed to determine just how much revenue the tax has raised so far this year. -
Federal Deposit Insurance for the 21st Century
Publication -Research and Commentaries -A holdover from the 1930s-era New Deal programs, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) aims to limit the occurrence and mitigate the effects of bank closures. -
Utah Cigarette Tax Is More than Meets the Eye
Publication -Research and Commentaries -In an effort to vilify the legal act of smoking, anti-tobacco groups in Utah are pushing a $2 per pack cigarette tax, with the help of very provocative and misleading statistics on health care costs. Utah smokers in 2007 paid $73. -
Smoking Bans and Property Rights
Publication -Research and Commentaries -As President Calvin Coolidge once said, "Ultimately property rights and personal rights are the same thing. -
Modernizing Unemployment Insurance for a 21st Century Economy
Publication -Research and Commentaries -During a time of economic uncertainty, the prospect of unemployment is on the minds of many workers. Established by the Social Security Act of 1935, the nation's unemployment insurance system is one of the most costly federal programs. -
Research & Commentary: Health Care Retail Clinics
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Affordable, convenient health care has become more available to average Americans as a result of the proliferation of so-called "retail clinics. -
The Simplicity of Goverment Transparency
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Governor Bobby Jindal’s short tenure in office has received extensive coverage from local and national media. -
Massachusetts Bucking The Trend On State Employees — And Not In A Good Way
Publication -Research and Commentaries -With 29 states expected to face budget deficits next year, many governors are realizing their state payrolls have swelled well beyond their means. At least 10 states have begun freezing and/or cutting payrolls. Massachusetts Gov. -
Student Loan Update
Publication -Research and Commentaries -One of the great tragedies affecting higher education today is the overpricing of an education that carries less and less value. -
FCC vs. Internet Providers
Publication -Research and Commentaries -For three years, Congress has failed to pass legislation implementing the doctrine of net neutrality. Recently, the FCC's patience ran thin, and the commission decided to act as if the doctrine were law anyway. -
Future Deficits Inevitable Without Comprehensive Solution
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Washington's estimated $2.7 billion budget shortfall will force tough decisions to be made in the coming years, and without fiscal discipline these deficits will reoccur in larger form. -
Privatization of Fannie and Freddie
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are in dire straits. -
Reoccurring Budget Deficits Need Comprehensive Fix
Publication -Research and Commentaries -California is facing a $17 billion deficit along with the third-highest unemployment rate in the country. This has caused some elected officials to say the state has a revenue problem ... but the facts say otherwise. Since Gov.