Business & Economics

Blog

Hyatt Case Shows Why Taxpayers Will Be Big Losers in BOE Power Grab

Recently, Gilbert Hyatt presented his side of a tax dispute case to the voter-elected Board of Equalization. The state has been pursuing Mr. Hyatt for 26 years, alleging that he owes millions in back taxes and penalties from capital gains from a computer patent he owns. The dispute centers over ...
Business & Economics

Lewis Carroll and the Pricing of Pharmaceuticals

Imagine a pharmaceutical market designed by Lewis Carroll’s Mad Hatter. In contrast to almost every other market, he might begin by charging wholesale prices that are higher than retail prices. He would then make sure that the higher wholesale price goes, the lower retail prices can become. And finally, he ...
Blog

What We Can Learn from the Car Pros About Tax Reform

Every weekend, I like to listen to the Car Pro guys on the radio when I’m driving around town. In case you’ve never heard the show, the Car Pro – whose real name is Jerry Reynolds – is a former big-time car dealer in Texas. He and his sidekick Kevin ...
Blog

Legislature Should Remove Barriers to Work for Californians

Late last month, U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta challenged state legislators to abolish one of the most noxious barriers to work: occupational licensing. If Sacramento lawmakers followed through, hundreds of thousands of Californians would be liberated from a system that bars entry into the workforce and also protects those who’ve ...
Business & Economics

Wayne Winegarden – How Will Tax Reform Impact California?

PRI’s Senior Fellow in Business and Economics Wayne Winegarden joins us to explore how various tax reform ideas could impact the tax burdens of Californians. He also discusses his study on how to move America’s economy “Beyond The New Normal” of low annual growth rates.
Business & Economics

Consumers And Industry Innovators Should Not Trust Antitrust

T.J. Rodgers, formerly the outspoken CEO of Cypress Semiconductor, once warned that the tech industry should not “normalize relations with Washington, D.C.” He wrote, “A normalized relationship between Washington and Silicon Valley … offers only disadvantages. The collectivism that Big Government espouses undermines capitalism and therefore the fundamental wealth-producing process ...
Blog

For Amazon, It’s a Great Big Jungle Out There

It seems that Seattle is no longer evergreen for Amazon. Last week, the company announced that it’s on the hunt for a second headquarters. There wasn’t a clear explanation for why the online retail giant is seeking a new habitat. But even climate change deniers would conclude that nature – ...
Business & Economics

Enriching Lawyers Is Not the Solution to the Opioid Crisis

Effective health care reforms must reduce the excessive costs imposed by frivolous lawsuits. Studies have shown that medical tort reform could reduce total health care premiums between 1 and 3 percent. As estimated by the American Action Forum, this could mean “roughly $15 billion” in savings from effective (but partial) ...
Blog

Legislature Serves Up Bad Recipe for Innovation Economy

Recently, a friend of mine told me how much she and her husband enjoyed subscribing to a home meal prep delivery service. Instead of having to go to the grocery story, they deliver all the fresh ingredients you need to make a gourmet recipe right to your doorstep. She suggested ...
Business & Economics

Can’t Buy Me Gender Equality

President Trump just rescinded an Obama administration policy aimed at closing the economic gap between men and women. The measure would have required companies to collect data on pay differences between genders and races. It’s tempting to see the move as dismissive of the gender disparities in our economy. But ...
Blog

Hyatt Case Shows Why Taxpayers Will Be Big Losers in BOE Power Grab

Recently, Gilbert Hyatt presented his side of a tax dispute case to the voter-elected Board of Equalization. The state has been pursuing Mr. Hyatt for 26 years, alleging that he owes millions in back taxes and penalties from capital gains from a computer patent he owns. The dispute centers over ...
Business & Economics

Lewis Carroll and the Pricing of Pharmaceuticals

Imagine a pharmaceutical market designed by Lewis Carroll’s Mad Hatter. In contrast to almost every other market, he might begin by charging wholesale prices that are higher than retail prices. He would then make sure that the higher wholesale price goes, the lower retail prices can become. And finally, he ...
Blog

What We Can Learn from the Car Pros About Tax Reform

Every weekend, I like to listen to the Car Pro guys on the radio when I’m driving around town. In case you’ve never heard the show, the Car Pro – whose real name is Jerry Reynolds – is a former big-time car dealer in Texas. He and his sidekick Kevin ...
Blog

Legislature Should Remove Barriers to Work for Californians

Late last month, U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta challenged state legislators to abolish one of the most noxious barriers to work: occupational licensing. If Sacramento lawmakers followed through, hundreds of thousands of Californians would be liberated from a system that bars entry into the workforce and also protects those who’ve ...
Business & Economics

Wayne Winegarden – How Will Tax Reform Impact California?

PRI’s Senior Fellow in Business and Economics Wayne Winegarden joins us to explore how various tax reform ideas could impact the tax burdens of Californians. He also discusses his study on how to move America’s economy “Beyond The New Normal” of low annual growth rates.
Business & Economics

Consumers And Industry Innovators Should Not Trust Antitrust

T.J. Rodgers, formerly the outspoken CEO of Cypress Semiconductor, once warned that the tech industry should not “normalize relations with Washington, D.C.” He wrote, “A normalized relationship between Washington and Silicon Valley … offers only disadvantages. The collectivism that Big Government espouses undermines capitalism and therefore the fundamental wealth-producing process ...
Blog

For Amazon, It’s a Great Big Jungle Out There

It seems that Seattle is no longer evergreen for Amazon. Last week, the company announced that it’s on the hunt for a second headquarters. There wasn’t a clear explanation for why the online retail giant is seeking a new habitat. But even climate change deniers would conclude that nature – ...
Business & Economics

Enriching Lawyers Is Not the Solution to the Opioid Crisis

Effective health care reforms must reduce the excessive costs imposed by frivolous lawsuits. Studies have shown that medical tort reform could reduce total health care premiums between 1 and 3 percent. As estimated by the American Action Forum, this could mean “roughly $15 billion” in savings from effective (but partial) ...
Blog

Legislature Serves Up Bad Recipe for Innovation Economy

Recently, a friend of mine told me how much she and her husband enjoyed subscribing to a home meal prep delivery service. Instead of having to go to the grocery story, they deliver all the fresh ingredients you need to make a gourmet recipe right to your doorstep. She suggested ...
Business & Economics

Can’t Buy Me Gender Equality

President Trump just rescinded an Obama administration policy aimed at closing the economic gap between men and women. The measure would have required companies to collect data on pay differences between genders and races. It’s tempting to see the move as dismissive of the gender disparities in our economy. But ...