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Health Care
Corbett’s Medicaid Expansion “Waiver” Strikes Bad Deal for Pennsylvanians
In this Heartlander article, Kristina Ribali, digital outreach director for the Foundation for Government Accountability, discusses the problem with HealthyPA, Pennsylvania’s Medicaid expansion program. Ribali writes, “Even before expansion, the Medicaid program in Pennsylvania was projected to cost taxpayers $40.9 billion per year by 2022. This is over a 70 percent increase, up from $24 billion today. That number will increase at least another $20 billion.” Read More
Energy & Environment
Research & Commentary: New Mexico Renewable Portfolio Standard
New Mexico has one of the most stringent renewable portfolio standards in the nation. The state government imposes a mandate of 20 percent renewable energy by 2020. The state also mandates a “diversity” requirement so each renewable source gets its own separate percentage requirement protecting it from competition. Heartland Institute Policy Analyst Taylor Smith describes how this law is unfriendly to consumers and can disrupt grid reliability. Read More
Education
Research & Commentary: Wisconsin Common Core
Recently, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker issued a one-sentence statement calling on the state legislature to pass a bill in early January that would repeal Common Core State Standards. His opponents countered that the standards are desirable because they would improve student achievement. Policy Analyst Taylor Smith writes, “A government-mandated, single-style progression of learning is unlikely to be the best way to accommodate the individuality of Wisconsin’s 865,000 students.” Read More
Budget & Tax
Experts Question Gov. Quinn’s Railway Spending Project
On August 31, Illinois Gov. Patrick Quinn announced $102 million in taxpayer funds will be spent improving the high-speed rail line between Chicago and St. Louis over the next three years. In thisHeartlander news article, a reporter for the Illinois News Network, Brandy Cremeens, discusses why policy experts believe “pouring government money into high-speed rail is a poor investment, especially considering the large amount of taxpayer dollars at stake.” Read More
Telecom
Shut Down MITFA and Demand ITFA Before November 1st, 2014
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a permanent moratorium on Internet access and sales taxes, called the Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA). The Senate has created its own bill, the Marketplace and Internet Tax Freedom Act (MITFA). Heartland Institute Government Relations Intern Alexander Anton explains, “[MITFA] only extends the Internet access tax ban by 10 years instead of permanently, and it would open up the 9,600 different state and local tax collecting agencies … to enforcing burdensome regulation and taxation on e-retailers.” Read More
From Our Free-Market Friends
The Fiscal Impact of School Choice Programs
“With 43 states now enacting school choice initiatives, there is a wealth of knowledge about how to successfully structure and fund school choice programs that can empower parents and students and meet their unique education needs.” In this report, the Platte Institute provides a guide for policymakers with practical recommendations on the measures to contemplate in structuring school choice programs. Read More
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