Research and Commentaries
-
Research & Commentary: North Carolina Hotel Occupancy Taxes
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Several counties in North Carolina are pushing to increase their hotel occupancy taxes up to the state maximum of 6 percent. Most of the counties say they will use the new revenue to promote tourism. -
Research & Commentary: North Carolina Film Incentives
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Over the past couple of decades, state governments have been rolling out the red carpet for Big Hollywood by adopting film tax incentive programs. -
Research & Commentary: Pennsylvania Pension Reform
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Like many other states, Pennsylvania faces a growing problem with its public pension systems. According to Pennsylvania’s own estimates, the total unfunded pension liability is set to grow by 38 percent, to $65 billion, in 2018. -
Research & Commentary: DDT Bans
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, or DDT, was first synthesized in 1874 and discovered to be an effective insecticide in 1939. -
Research & Commentary: Energy Poverty
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Some 1.3 billion people around the world do not have access to electricity, and 2. -
Research & Commentary: Physician-Owned Hospitals and the Affordable Care Act
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Physician-owned specialty hospitals have faced several major challenges since the implementation of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). -
Research & Commentary: Missouri Tax Increment Financing Reform
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Tax increment financing has become a popular tool for funding economic development projects in municipalities across the country. -
Research & Commentary: State Film Incentives
Publication -Research and Commentaries -State governments across the country have been rolling out the red carpet for Big Hollywood on the taxpayer’s dime, adopting film incentive programs designed to entice motion picture production into their respective states. -
Research & Commentary: Medical Licensing and the Doctor Shortage
Publication -Research and Commentaries -A 2011 study published in the Milbank Quarterly found Obamacare would create a need for between 4,300 and 7,000 more physicians in the United States by 2019. -
Research & Commentary: EPA’s Clean Power Plan
Publication -Research and Commentaries -On June 2, 2014, the Obama administration mandated a 30 percent cut in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2030 from power plants’ 2005 levels. -
Research & Commentary: State Income Tax Revenue Since the Fiscal Cliff
Publication -Research and Commentaries -More states have been lowering or eliminating income taxes in order to spur economic growth in recent years. In 2013 alone, eight states lowered some aspect of their income tax rates, and several others are considering similar changes this year. -
Research & Commentary: Alabama Pension Reform
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Unfunded state pension liabilities have become an increasingly troubling problem for states across the country, including Alabama. In 2010, Alabama received a grade of D in The Heartland Institute’s 50-State Pension Report Card. -
Research & Commentary: Common Core in Pennsylvania
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Pennsylvania is one of 45 states that adopted national Common Core State Standards. State officials refer to the standards as “The Pennsylvania Core Standards” because they have added three appendices. -
Research & Commentary: Teacher Tenure in California
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The Los Angeles County Superior Court case Vergara v. California attracted national attention because of the possible ramifications it could have on teacher tenure across the nation. On June 10, Judge Rolf M. -
Research & Commentary: Mandated “Three-Tier” Distribution of Alcohol
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Alcohol products (beer, wine, and spirits) are some of the most tightly regulated consumer products in the United States. -
Research & Commentary: Pence’s HIP 2.0 Is Not Conservative Medicaid Reform
Publication -Research and Commentaries -In May 2014, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence introduced a proposal to expand the state’s Medicaid program, known as the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP). Currently, HIP serves only individual Indianans earning below the federal poverty level. -
Research & Commentary: Reimbursement Flaws in Medicaid and the ACA
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Fewer doctors are accepting new Medicaid patients today, in part due to low reimbursement rates and a large increase in Medicaid enrollment caused by states expanding Medicaid in response to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) promise of additional federal -
Research & Commentary: Right to Work in Kentucky
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Implemented in 1947, the Taft-Harley Act (THA), Section 14(b), allows states to adopt right-to-work laws. -
Research & Commentary: Car Rental Taxes
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Tourism taxes have become increasingly popular with city and state governments as a source of new revenue. -
Research & Commentary: Illinois Renewable Portfolio Standard
Publication -Research and Commentaries -In August 2007, the Illinois General Assembly enacted legislation creating a Renewable Portfolio Standard. The statute requires Ameren and ComEd to acquire 25 percent of their electricity generation from qualified renewable sources by 2026. -
Research & Commentary: Illinois Renewable Portfolio Standard
Publication -Research and Commentaries -In August 2007, the Illinois General Assembly enacted legislation creating a Renewable Portfolio Standard. The statute requires Ameren and ComEd to acquire 25 percent of their electricity generation from qualified renewable sources by 2026. -
Research & Commentary: The Grow America Proposal
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The Obama Administration recently proposed a $302 billion transportation funding plan, the Generating Renewal, Opportunity, and Work with Accelerated Mobility, Efficiency, and Rebuilding of Infrastructure and Communities throughout America (GROW AMERICA) -
Research & Commentary: The Cost of Failed Health Insurance Exchanges
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) states were allowed to choose between creating their own health insurance exchanges and joining a federal exchange. -
Research & Commentary: Zero-Subsidy Energy Policy
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Compared to other areas of the economy, the U.S. energy sector (except for the electricity industry) historically has been lightly regulated and relatively free.
