Publications
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Research & Commentary: Optional Federal Charter: The Future of Insurance Regulation?
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945 ushered in the current era of state regulation of the insurance industry. -
County of Santa Clara, et al., vs. The Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Publication -Policy Studies -On Monday, April 27, 2009, The Heartland Institute filed an Amicus brief in the California Supreme Court supporting the defendants in the case who argue California cities and counties ought to be barred from hiring contingent fee lawyers to prosecute -
“Sin Taxes” Are Flawed Tax Policy
Publication -Research and Commentaries -More than 20 states are considering “sin taxes”—such as excise taxes on tobacco, beer, and spirits—in order to shore up their budget deficits. But such taxes are badly flawed and likely to do far more harm than good to a state’s economy. -
Vouchers And South Carolina School Children
Publication -Research and Commentaries -In a marketplace, cash follows the consumer. Institutions that provide value to consumers flourish, and those that do not wither. But that’s not true in education, because of the government monopoly on the tax revenues that fund schooling. -
Research & Commentary: Windstorm Expansion of the National Flood Insurance Program
Publication -Research and Commentaries -In an effort to address the concerns of coastal residents and respond to political pressure to subsidize the risk posed by hurricanes, the national government is considering proposals to expand its role in coastal insurance. -
Research & Commentary: April Fool’s Day Tobacco Tax Hike—The Joke’s On States
Publication -Research and Commentaries -A 62-cent increase in the federal excise tax on tobacco products, intended to fund the expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), goes into effect April 1. -
President Barack Obama’s Cap-and-Trade Plan
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The Obama administration, with overwhelming support from the majority party in Congress, is promoting a carbon emissions cap-and-trade plan that could spell disaster for the nation--especially given the United States's current economic crisis. -
Illinois Cannot Afford Governor Quinn’s Budget
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Tough decisions are a part of governing, and Illinois’ $11.5 billion budget shortfall will undoubtedly force many of them. -
Universal Access Fund Reform
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Federal and state Universal Access and Service Funds (UASFs) have become an inefficient and unnecessary use of taxpayer money.The funds’ original intent—to expand basic telephone service to rural and low-income residents—has run its course. -
Is the U.S. Surface Temperature Record Reliable?
Publication -Books -The stakes in the debate over global warming are high. If human activities are causing a major warming of the earth’s atmosphere, then actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions costing hundreds of billions of dollars would be necessary. -
Research & Commentary: Health Information Technology
Publication -Research and Commentaries -As part of the federal government’s economic stimulus package, Congress has authorized spending about $20 billion on health information technology (health IT) and another $1 billion on comparative effectiveness research. -
Research & Commentary: The Best And Worst Ways To Eliminate A Budget Deficit
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Research & Commentary: The Best And Worst Ways to Eliminate a Budget DeficitLegislatures in at least 39 states will have to take steps by the end of this fiscal year to eradicate budget deficits totaling nearly $50 billion. -
The Ineffectiveness of Individual Mandates
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Providing insurance coverage for the uninsured has become a cause celebre during the recent crisis, with hundreds of thousands of Americans losing their jobs and the percentage of Americans without insurance rising across multiple policy lines. -
What A Smoking Ban Would Mean For Indiana
Publication -Research and Commentaries -While Indiana’s legislature and citizens debate the merits of a draconian statewide smoking ban, business owners are already taking steps to balance the wishes of the smoking and nonsmoking populations. -
Ten Principles of Telecom Policy
Publication -Legislative Principles -Why do we need principles of telecom policy? -
FHA Loans Create Substantial Risk for Taxpayers
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The subprime crisis has spawned numerous calls for tightening the credit market and banking regulations, in a market that is already highly regulated. -
Federal Cigarette Tax Increase Unfit for SCHIP
Publication -Research and Commentaries -Proposals to increase the federal cigarette tax by 61 cents (156 percent), in order to pay for an expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), are problematic. -
An Economic Examination of West Virginia ‘s Prevailing Wage Law
Publication -Research and Commentaries -The Public Policy Foundation of West Virginia is a nonprofit research and educational organization that conducts scholarly research and analysis of public policy in West Virginia. -
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.