Business & Economics
Blog
Assembly Offers $120 million Bait to UC to Stop 401(k) plans
The great investor Warren Buffett once said, “Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks.” UC President Janet Napolitano probably had similar thoughts when she wrote to the Assembly opposing their offer ...
Blog
When the Public Option Is the Only Option
Single-payer has failed abroad and at home. Yet the call for single-payer from progressives has never been louder. Vermont senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and his dedicated followers have been the loudest. In his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, he promised “Medicare for All.” In September 2017, he ...
Blog
The Anti-Growth Tariffs Are a Clear and Present Danger to Our Future Economic Prosperity
Without a hint of irony, while announcing the 25 percent tariffs on imported steel and the 10 percent tariffs on imported aluminum on May 31st, Commerce Secretary Ross proclaimed that “we take the view that without a strong economy, you cannot have strong national security”. In reality, these tariffs will ...
Business & Economics
Starbucks’ Inclusive Culture Results in Lingerers
By Brendan Pringle This afternoon some 8,000 Starbucks stores in the United States shut down for “racial-bias education” to prevent discrimination in its stores. Starbucks remains under fire after the arrest of two black men after they refused to leave or make a purchase. The training is said to include a ...
Blog
Taxifornia This Week
By Rowena Itchon and Tim Anaya This week, the Assembly and Senate face a key deadline. All bills originating must pass their “house of origin” by the end of the week (i.e., bills introduced in the Assembly must pass the Assembly). The Appropriations Committees of both houses weighed in on ...
Blog
With California’s Rising Gas Prices, Driving Won’t Be So ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ This Summer
She drives real fast and she drives real hard, She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard. — The Little Old Lady from Pasadena, The Beach Boys, 1964 I loved this song when I was growing up, and I love it even more now that PRI’s Southern California office is on the ...
Blog
Will Sports Betting Ruling Be a New Gold Rush for California?
That sound you hear is the rush of California politicians and various moneyed interests racing to try and take advantage of a recent Supreme Court ruling paving the way for sports betting in every state. On May 14, the Court struck down a federal law passed in the early 1990’s ...
Blog
Could Court Case Gig the Gig Economy?
Businesses in California could use some good news, but one wonders when — and sometimes if — any will ever come. At the same time, there seems to be no end to the bad news, at least when government authorities are involved. The most recent example is a California Supreme ...
Business & Economics
The High Costs of Cost Sharing Insurance
Incentives drive all economic activity. Unfortunately, far too many of the incentives that underlie the U.S. health care sector discourage quality and encourage excessive costs. Our current health insurance system exemplifies this problem. The disincentives created by the way the U.S. health insurance industry operates arise because insurers do not ...
Business & Economics
Pharmaceutical Price Controls Will Not Improve Health Care Outcomes in Illinois
Due to its national implications, last week’s introduction of the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) blueprint on drug prices is garnering all the attention. Despite its importance, HHS’ blueprint should not overshadow the many poor, and even unconstitutional, policy proposals that are occurring at the state level. For ...
Assembly Offers $120 million Bait to UC to Stop 401(k) plans
The great investor Warren Buffett once said, “Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks.” UC President Janet Napolitano probably had similar thoughts when she wrote to the Assembly opposing their offer ...
When the Public Option Is the Only Option
Single-payer has failed abroad and at home. Yet the call for single-payer from progressives has never been louder. Vermont senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and his dedicated followers have been the loudest. In his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, he promised “Medicare for All.” In September 2017, he ...
The Anti-Growth Tariffs Are a Clear and Present Danger to Our Future Economic Prosperity
Without a hint of irony, while announcing the 25 percent tariffs on imported steel and the 10 percent tariffs on imported aluminum on May 31st, Commerce Secretary Ross proclaimed that “we take the view that without a strong economy, you cannot have strong national security”. In reality, these tariffs will ...
Starbucks’ Inclusive Culture Results in Lingerers
By Brendan Pringle This afternoon some 8,000 Starbucks stores in the United States shut down for “racial-bias education” to prevent discrimination in its stores. Starbucks remains under fire after the arrest of two black men after they refused to leave or make a purchase. The training is said to include a ...
Taxifornia This Week
By Rowena Itchon and Tim Anaya This week, the Assembly and Senate face a key deadline. All bills originating must pass their “house of origin” by the end of the week (i.e., bills introduced in the Assembly must pass the Assembly). The Appropriations Committees of both houses weighed in on ...
With California’s Rising Gas Prices, Driving Won’t Be So ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ This Summer
She drives real fast and she drives real hard, She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard. — The Little Old Lady from Pasadena, The Beach Boys, 1964 I loved this song when I was growing up, and I love it even more now that PRI’s Southern California office is on the ...
Will Sports Betting Ruling Be a New Gold Rush for California?
That sound you hear is the rush of California politicians and various moneyed interests racing to try and take advantage of a recent Supreme Court ruling paving the way for sports betting in every state. On May 14, the Court struck down a federal law passed in the early 1990’s ...
Could Court Case Gig the Gig Economy?
Businesses in California could use some good news, but one wonders when — and sometimes if — any will ever come. At the same time, there seems to be no end to the bad news, at least when government authorities are involved. The most recent example is a California Supreme ...
The High Costs of Cost Sharing Insurance
Incentives drive all economic activity. Unfortunately, far too many of the incentives that underlie the U.S. health care sector discourage quality and encourage excessive costs. Our current health insurance system exemplifies this problem. The disincentives created by the way the U.S. health insurance industry operates arise because insurers do not ...
Pharmaceutical Price Controls Will Not Improve Health Care Outcomes in Illinois
Due to its national implications, last week’s introduction of the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) blueprint on drug prices is garnering all the attention. Despite its importance, HHS’ blueprint should not overshadow the many poor, and even unconstitutional, policy proposals that are occurring at the state level. For ...
