California
Agriculture
How well do you know your federal government? Take the Deep State Quiz
Our colleagues at Open The Books did a deep dive into the deep state with their outstanding new report: Mapping the Swamp: A Study of the Administrative State, FY 2020. This eye-popping report shows just how big and bloated — not to mention costly — the federal government has become. ...
Commentary
Latest Medicaid Data Show A Deeply Broken Program
A bank that misplaced over one-fifth of its deposits would be shut down almost immediately. So would a hospital that bungled one in five operations, or a private health insurer that mishandled one-fifth of its claims. But apparently, the bar is a lot lower for government programs. The Biden administration ...
California
Lanhee Chen: California Transparency and Accountability
Lanhee Chen, Director of the Domestic Policy Studies in Public Policy program at Stanford University, discusses all things California, from budgetary mismanagement – including COVID-19 relief funds, the looming pension crisis, as well as government accountability and transparency. One of the state’s leading policy experts, Lanhee Chen provides his perspective ...
Blog
CA Lawmakers Proposed $236 Billion+ in New Taxes Despite Record Revenue
Despite taking in record state tax revenue over the past year, California lawmakers proposed more than $236.4 billion in new taxes and fees in 2021, finds the annual “Tax and Fee Report” just released by the California Tax Foundation. Over the past twelve months, lawmakers proposed 74 different tax and ...
Blog
Absent State Leadership, California Cities Continue to Lead on Parking Deregulation
Recently, San Diego moved to eliminate minimum parking regulations for businesses near transit and in neighborhood commercial areas. As reported in the San Diego Union-Tribune, the measure—which ended the practice of local regulators telling certain walkable and transit-accessible businesses how many off-street parking spaces they must build—enjoyed unanimous support from ...
Blog
Criminals Respond To Incentives Just As Consumers Do
California seems to have become a plunderers’ paradise. Thieves have moved on from shoplifting with large garbage bags at drug stores to violent smash-and-run raids on retailers, some of them during the middle of the day. Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Louis Vuitton, and other stores from San Francisco to ...
Blog
Support PRI’s Campaign for America’s Future on Giving Tuesday
Today marks Giving Tuesday—a global movement to inspire generosity around the world. At the Pacific Research Institute, we are grateful to all our donors who have generously supported our work to advance market-driven policies that fulfill our mission to champion freedom, opportunity, and personal responsibility for all Americans. We certainly ...
Blog
The Once and Future “Net Neutrality”
Late last month the Biden Administration finally got around to nominating a new commissioner to the Federal Communications Commission to replace Chairman Ajit Pai, who left the FCC at the beginning of the year. Also nominated was a current commissioner, Jessica Rosenworcel, for another term and also to become the ...
Commentary
Democrats’ Creative Accounting Can’t Hide Build Back Better’s True Cost
For weeks, President Joe Biden has insisted that the Democrats’ ‘Build Back Better’ spending bill would be “fully paid for.” The Congressional Budget Office begs to differ. In its newly released analysis of the bill, the CBO projects that ‘Build Back Better’ will increase the deficit by $367 billion over ...
Blog
The California Cost Of Thanksgiving
All Californians traveling this Thanksgiving by automobile will be paying steep prices for gasoline. Those who have a little cash left over after filling up can indulge in a meager (compared to last year) turkey day meal. As of Nov. 22, California had the highest gasoline prices in the country. ...
How well do you know your federal government? Take the Deep State Quiz
Our colleagues at Open The Books did a deep dive into the deep state with their outstanding new report: Mapping the Swamp: A Study of the Administrative State, FY 2020. This eye-popping report shows just how big and bloated — not to mention costly — the federal government has become. ...
Latest Medicaid Data Show A Deeply Broken Program
A bank that misplaced over one-fifth of its deposits would be shut down almost immediately. So would a hospital that bungled one in five operations, or a private health insurer that mishandled one-fifth of its claims. But apparently, the bar is a lot lower for government programs. The Biden administration ...
Lanhee Chen: California Transparency and Accountability
Lanhee Chen, Director of the Domestic Policy Studies in Public Policy program at Stanford University, discusses all things California, from budgetary mismanagement – including COVID-19 relief funds, the looming pension crisis, as well as government accountability and transparency. One of the state’s leading policy experts, Lanhee Chen provides his perspective ...
CA Lawmakers Proposed $236 Billion+ in New Taxes Despite Record Revenue
Despite taking in record state tax revenue over the past year, California lawmakers proposed more than $236.4 billion in new taxes and fees in 2021, finds the annual “Tax and Fee Report” just released by the California Tax Foundation. Over the past twelve months, lawmakers proposed 74 different tax and ...
Absent State Leadership, California Cities Continue to Lead on Parking Deregulation
Recently, San Diego moved to eliminate minimum parking regulations for businesses near transit and in neighborhood commercial areas. As reported in the San Diego Union-Tribune, the measure—which ended the practice of local regulators telling certain walkable and transit-accessible businesses how many off-street parking spaces they must build—enjoyed unanimous support from ...
Criminals Respond To Incentives Just As Consumers Do
California seems to have become a plunderers’ paradise. Thieves have moved on from shoplifting with large garbage bags at drug stores to violent smash-and-run raids on retailers, some of them during the middle of the day. Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Louis Vuitton, and other stores from San Francisco to ...
Support PRI’s Campaign for America’s Future on Giving Tuesday
Today marks Giving Tuesday—a global movement to inspire generosity around the world. At the Pacific Research Institute, we are grateful to all our donors who have generously supported our work to advance market-driven policies that fulfill our mission to champion freedom, opportunity, and personal responsibility for all Americans. We certainly ...
The Once and Future “Net Neutrality”
Late last month the Biden Administration finally got around to nominating a new commissioner to the Federal Communications Commission to replace Chairman Ajit Pai, who left the FCC at the beginning of the year. Also nominated was a current commissioner, Jessica Rosenworcel, for another term and also to become the ...
Democrats’ Creative Accounting Can’t Hide Build Back Better’s True Cost
For weeks, President Joe Biden has insisted that the Democrats’ ‘Build Back Better’ spending bill would be “fully paid for.” The Congressional Budget Office begs to differ. In its newly released analysis of the bill, the CBO projects that ‘Build Back Better’ will increase the deficit by $367 billion over ...
The California Cost Of Thanksgiving
All Californians traveling this Thanksgiving by automobile will be paying steep prices for gasoline. Those who have a little cash left over after filling up can indulge in a meager (compared to last year) turkey day meal. As of Nov. 22, California had the highest gasoline prices in the country. ...
