Environment
Commentary
States looking to exchange Obamacare’s insurance exchanges
The next act in the Obamacare saga is about to begin — and it’s going to be tragic. December 14 marks the deadline for states to reveal their plans for constructing insurance exchanges in line with the healthcare law’s dictates. Many are opting out — leaving the federal government to ...
Business & Economics
The Crusade Against Plastic Bags
KEY POINTS An ever-growing number of municipalities are instituting bans on plastic grocery bags in the name of environmental protection; Studies are mixed regarding whether or not such bans offer significant environmental benefits, but claims of rampant environmental harms are suspect; Proponents of bag-bans omit the most important consideration, which ...
California
Is The Fix In Higher Taxes And Less School Accountability
Supporters of Gov. Jerry Browns tax-hike ballot measure, Proposition 30, argue that the added tax revenues are needed so schools can, among other things, turn out high-achieving students. The head of the San Diego teachers union claims that without revenues to pay for programs and personnel, our schools are struggling ...
California
Implementing AB 32 will increase unemployment, household expenses
With the passage of California’s Assembly Bill 32, the Golden State has embarked upon an experiment in energy policy that has no modern parallel. Several recent studies have shown that the consequences to the state could be dire, and that California faces a choice between continuing on its current trajectory ...
California
Win some, lose some on bill signing
We take selective note of bills signed or vetoed the past week by Gov. Jerry Brown. Commendably, the governor vetoed Senate Bill 1235, by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento. It would have required the state superintendent of public instruction and the Department of Education to “provide training and ...
California
California Recovery Project
In early February, we had the privilege of hosting Dr. Art Laffer at PRI’s Ronald Reagan Centennial Tribute in Orange County. At this event, we were pleased to announce that Dr. Laffer had agreed to work with us on a new California Recovery Project, an initiative that will take direct ...
Health Care
Feed the Beast: Renewing the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA)
Key Points: There is a crisis in biopharmaceutical R&D in all segments of the industry – large, mid-market, and new ventures. Much of the responsibility for this can be laid at the door of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is slow to approve new drugs. The law that ...
Commentary
What I Learned At Haas Business School’s Health Care Conference
Theres a lot of entrepreneurial energy in the Bay Area, but Im always surprised at how much of it is directed towards health care. As Apothecary readers surely recognize, if we were to rank sectors where the government lies ready to crush the entrepreneurial spirit, health care and education must ...
Commentary
Common Core and Universal Design for Learning
If states adopt his Common Core standards, they will be exempt from the onerous provisions of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandates. I was having a cup of inflation-stricken chili that looked a few ounces smaller than beforethe Michelle food-police with her holier-than-thou dictates of nutrition must have convinced the ...
Business & Economics
Bond Holders Seek Governmental Transparency
Once upon a time buying a municipal bond was considered a safe bet. A decent rate of return with little risk – just the thing for junior’s college fund and grandma’s retirement account. But that was before Standard & Poor’s downgraded the U.S. government’s credit-worthiness, sending shock waves through the ...
States looking to exchange Obamacare’s insurance exchanges
The next act in the Obamacare saga is about to begin — and it’s going to be tragic. December 14 marks the deadline for states to reveal their plans for constructing insurance exchanges in line with the healthcare law’s dictates. Many are opting out — leaving the federal government to ...
The Crusade Against Plastic Bags
KEY POINTS An ever-growing number of municipalities are instituting bans on plastic grocery bags in the name of environmental protection; Studies are mixed regarding whether or not such bans offer significant environmental benefits, but claims of rampant environmental harms are suspect; Proponents of bag-bans omit the most important consideration, which ...
Is The Fix In Higher Taxes And Less School Accountability
Supporters of Gov. Jerry Browns tax-hike ballot measure, Proposition 30, argue that the added tax revenues are needed so schools can, among other things, turn out high-achieving students. The head of the San Diego teachers union claims that without revenues to pay for programs and personnel, our schools are struggling ...
Implementing AB 32 will increase unemployment, household expenses
With the passage of California’s Assembly Bill 32, the Golden State has embarked upon an experiment in energy policy that has no modern parallel. Several recent studies have shown that the consequences to the state could be dire, and that California faces a choice between continuing on its current trajectory ...
Win some, lose some on bill signing
We take selective note of bills signed or vetoed the past week by Gov. Jerry Brown. Commendably, the governor vetoed Senate Bill 1235, by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento. It would have required the state superintendent of public instruction and the Department of Education to “provide training and ...
California Recovery Project
In early February, we had the privilege of hosting Dr. Art Laffer at PRI’s Ronald Reagan Centennial Tribute in Orange County. At this event, we were pleased to announce that Dr. Laffer had agreed to work with us on a new California Recovery Project, an initiative that will take direct ...
Feed the Beast: Renewing the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA)
Key Points: There is a crisis in biopharmaceutical R&D in all segments of the industry – large, mid-market, and new ventures. Much of the responsibility for this can be laid at the door of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is slow to approve new drugs. The law that ...
What I Learned At Haas Business School’s Health Care Conference
Theres a lot of entrepreneurial energy in the Bay Area, but Im always surprised at how much of it is directed towards health care. As Apothecary readers surely recognize, if we were to rank sectors where the government lies ready to crush the entrepreneurial spirit, health care and education must ...
Common Core and Universal Design for Learning
If states adopt his Common Core standards, they will be exempt from the onerous provisions of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandates. I was having a cup of inflation-stricken chili that looked a few ounces smaller than beforethe Michelle food-police with her holier-than-thou dictates of nutrition must have convinced the ...
Bond Holders Seek Governmental Transparency
Once upon a time buying a municipal bond was considered a safe bet. A decent rate of return with little risk – just the thing for junior’s college fund and grandma’s retirement account. But that was before Standard & Poor’s downgraded the U.S. government’s credit-worthiness, sending shock waves through the ...
