Blog
Blog
California’s “Greatest Showman” Opens His Last Budget Circus
Last week, I had the chance to see the new movie “The Greatest Showman” about P.T. Barnum and how his dreams to set up his famous circus became a reality. Hugh Jackman and the very entertaining cast deliver a crowd-pleasing and empowering performance. After watching the movie, I started thinking ...
Tim Anaya
January 12, 2018
Blog
Brown’s Budget Rejects Tax Rebates, Ignores Need for State Tax Reform
Gov. Jerry Brown’s 2018-19 budget proposal is projecting a $6.1 billion surplus by July 1, 2019, further evidence that the taxpayers of California have been overcharged. But there will be no rebates. Brown said at his press conference Wednesday that, in effect, the sky would fall if you give tax ...
Kerry Jackson
January 11, 2018
Blog
Let the Games Begin…More Tax Stunts from the States
My fellow blogger Tim Anaya wrote a blog earlier this week on the latest scheme from Sacramento to game the new tax law. Senate Bill 227 would allow taxpayers to make charitable donations to the state and receive a tax credit for the full amount of their contribution. It works ...
Rowena Itchon
January 10, 2018
Blog
Free Markets 101: A Conservative View of Wealth Creation
Editor’s Note: Damon Dunn breaks down what are often-confusing economic concepts and makes free market economics more relatable to our everyday lives in his new Right by the Bay column, ‘Free Markets 101’. We are pleased to present his debut column below. One key to understanding the recent populist uprisings ...
Damon Dunn
January 9, 2018
Blog
Protect CA Taxpayers Act More About Protecting Big Spending
After spending the holiday season consulting liberal academics, State Senate Democrats on Thursday unveiled their answer to President Donald Trump’s tax cut law. Calling their proposal an effort to “protect California residents” from the federal tax cut proposal that was signed into law just before Christmas, Senate Bill 227 would ...
Tim Anaya
January 8, 2018
Blog
Social Security Beneficiaries Reach an All-Time High
An oft-cited survey from 1994 found that one out of every three respondents age 18 and 34 said they were more likely to see a UFO than receive a Social Security check. Fast forward 23 years later — last November, the U.S. reached a record number of Social Security beneficiaries ...
Rowena Itchon
January 5, 2018
Blog
New Studies Confirm the Obvious – $15 Minimum Wage Hurts California Job Opportunities
The negative impacts of setting — and increasing — minimum wages should be beyond debate by now. The economic science is settled. Yet California policymakers continue to believe in unicorn economic fantasies. For example, more than a dozen cities and counties in the Bay Area have changed their minimum-wage ordinances ...
Kerry Jackson
January 4, 2018
Blog
With Silicon Valley Exodus Looming, Lawmakers Must Make Tax Relief Top 2018 Priority
Last week, Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman said in an interview that tech companies are already beginning an exodus away from expensive coastal areas such as Silicon Valley and Los Angeles toward more affordable cities in America’s heartland. He said that the trend will likely be accelerated in response to the ...
Tim Anaya
January 3, 2018
Blog
Help Us Make 2018 A Great Year for Freedom
With the end of the year upon us, what better time to talk about all that we have accomplished at the Pacific Research Institute in 2017. In the past 12 months, we have: promoted policies that expand access to high-quality education through school choice, charter schools, and digital learning opportunities ...
Ben Smithwick
December 29, 2017
Blog
California Can Expect More of the Same from Sacramento in 2018
There are no fortune tellers at PRI, but it isn’t hard to foresee what is likely to happen in California in 2018. First, it’s a sure bet that the Legislature will pass a boxcar load of unneeded, heavy-handed and odious policies when lawmakers reconvene on Jan. 3. One that will ...
Kerry Jackson
December 28, 2017
California’s “Greatest Showman” Opens His Last Budget Circus
Last week, I had the chance to see the new movie “The Greatest Showman” about P.T. Barnum and how his dreams to set up his famous circus became a reality. Hugh Jackman and the very entertaining cast deliver a crowd-pleasing and empowering performance. After watching the movie, I started thinking ...
Brown’s Budget Rejects Tax Rebates, Ignores Need for State Tax Reform
Gov. Jerry Brown’s 2018-19 budget proposal is projecting a $6.1 billion surplus by July 1, 2019, further evidence that the taxpayers of California have been overcharged. But there will be no rebates. Brown said at his press conference Wednesday that, in effect, the sky would fall if you give tax ...
Let the Games Begin…More Tax Stunts from the States
My fellow blogger Tim Anaya wrote a blog earlier this week on the latest scheme from Sacramento to game the new tax law. Senate Bill 227 would allow taxpayers to make charitable donations to the state and receive a tax credit for the full amount of their contribution. It works ...
Free Markets 101: A Conservative View of Wealth Creation
Editor’s Note: Damon Dunn breaks down what are often-confusing economic concepts and makes free market economics more relatable to our everyday lives in his new Right by the Bay column, ‘Free Markets 101’. We are pleased to present his debut column below. One key to understanding the recent populist uprisings ...
Protect CA Taxpayers Act More About Protecting Big Spending
After spending the holiday season consulting liberal academics, State Senate Democrats on Thursday unveiled their answer to President Donald Trump’s tax cut law. Calling their proposal an effort to “protect California residents” from the federal tax cut proposal that was signed into law just before Christmas, Senate Bill 227 would ...
Social Security Beneficiaries Reach an All-Time High
An oft-cited survey from 1994 found that one out of every three respondents age 18 and 34 said they were more likely to see a UFO than receive a Social Security check. Fast forward 23 years later — last November, the U.S. reached a record number of Social Security beneficiaries ...
New Studies Confirm the Obvious – $15 Minimum Wage Hurts California Job Opportunities
The negative impacts of setting — and increasing — minimum wages should be beyond debate by now. The economic science is settled. Yet California policymakers continue to believe in unicorn economic fantasies. For example, more than a dozen cities and counties in the Bay Area have changed their minimum-wage ordinances ...
With Silicon Valley Exodus Looming, Lawmakers Must Make Tax Relief Top 2018 Priority
Last week, Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman said in an interview that tech companies are already beginning an exodus away from expensive coastal areas such as Silicon Valley and Los Angeles toward more affordable cities in America’s heartland. He said that the trend will likely be accelerated in response to the ...
Help Us Make 2018 A Great Year for Freedom
With the end of the year upon us, what better time to talk about all that we have accomplished at the Pacific Research Institute in 2017. In the past 12 months, we have: promoted policies that expand access to high-quality education through school choice, charter schools, and digital learning opportunities ...
California Can Expect More of the Same from Sacramento in 2018
There are no fortune tellers at PRI, but it isn’t hard to foresee what is likely to happen in California in 2018. First, it’s a sure bet that the Legislature will pass a boxcar load of unneeded, heavy-handed and odious policies when lawmakers reconvene on Jan. 3. One that will ...