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 ...
Blog
Connecting the Dots After a Trip to the Home Depot
A couple of Saturdays ago, I had to make a trip to my neighborhood Home Depot to pick up a few gardening supplies to do some work in the backyard. While looking for a replacement hose for my drip watering system (see, I am water efficient despite my blog post ...
Blog
What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel
What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel While America was obsessed this week with whether we heard Yanny or Laurel (and I hear Yanny for the record), I was busy watching other things online. If you’re interested – or don’t know what the heck I’m talking about – watch ...
Blog
Legislature Still Has Chance to Eliminate Unnecessary Barriers to Work
Cutting, styling, shampooing, and curling hair properly takes some practice. But how much before a person is skilled enough to obtain a license to perform those tasks in California? The state says at least 1,500 hours of training are needed. Common-sense says far fewer. In California, a cosmetologist is required ...
Blog
Is Buying Stock in Companies That Spend a Lot on Lobbying a Good Investment Strategy?
We’re all hearing it: the bull market is “long on the tooth,” and the market volatility we’ve seen so far this year is a sign that a big correction, or even a bear market, may be around the corner. Interest rate fears, trade wars, and the ballooning debt are all ...
Blog
CAPITAL IDEAS: Should California Workers & Policymakers Fear Flippy the Hamburger-Making Robot?
DOWNLOAD THE PDF Flippy, California’s and the world’s first automated fast-food grill master, has been fired. But after a few tweaks, he will be rehired. The same can’t be said about the humans who will lose their jobs to robots due to the state’s minimum wage. Flippy worked one day ...
Blog
Governor’s Final May Revise Par for the Course for Brown 2.0
On Friday, Governor Brown released his final “May Revise” budget proposal. For those who aren’t fluent in government-ese, the May Revise is the Governor’s revised budget proposal, taking into account updated tax receipts, economic trends, and budget needs. It’s from this proposal that the Brown Administration will negotiate a final ...
Blog
What We’re Watching – Will A Carbon Tax Increase the Cost of a Sandwich?
Tim Anaya – Will A Carbon Tax Increase the Cost of a Sandwich? One idea for a new tax that is floated around from time to time in California and Washington is a carbon tax. Recently, our friends at the Texas Public Policy Foundation put out a video showing the real ...
Blog
Not Much to Celebrate as California’s Economy Grows on Paper
California’s economy has now surpassed that of United Kingdom, making it the fifth-largest in the world if it were its own country. Despite this growth, and in contrast to the perception that all is well in California because the economy looks so robust, the Golden State’s economy is not quite ...
Blog
Is It A Bad Thing for State Workers to Save Taxpayers on Work Travel?
As the sharing economy has grown in California, we’re changing how we approach many common life transactions. When we’re looking for a repair person to fix a broken toilet, now we might look to Thumbtack to bid out of the job when before we would have called a traditional plumber ...
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 ...
Connecting the Dots After a Trip to the Home Depot
A couple of Saturdays ago, I had to make a trip to my neighborhood Home Depot to pick up a few gardening supplies to do some work in the backyard. While looking for a replacement hose for my drip watering system (see, I am water efficient despite my blog post ...
What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel
What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel While America was obsessed this week with whether we heard Yanny or Laurel (and I hear Yanny for the record), I was busy watching other things online. If you’re interested – or don’t know what the heck I’m talking about – watch ...
Legislature Still Has Chance to Eliminate Unnecessary Barriers to Work
Cutting, styling, shampooing, and curling hair properly takes some practice. But how much before a person is skilled enough to obtain a license to perform those tasks in California? The state says at least 1,500 hours of training are needed. Common-sense says far fewer. In California, a cosmetologist is required ...
Is Buying Stock in Companies That Spend a Lot on Lobbying a Good Investment Strategy?
We’re all hearing it: the bull market is “long on the tooth,” and the market volatility we’ve seen so far this year is a sign that a big correction, or even a bear market, may be around the corner. Interest rate fears, trade wars, and the ballooning debt are all ...
CAPITAL IDEAS: Should California Workers & Policymakers Fear Flippy the Hamburger-Making Robot?
DOWNLOAD THE PDF Flippy, California’s and the world’s first automated fast-food grill master, has been fired. But after a few tweaks, he will be rehired. The same can’t be said about the humans who will lose their jobs to robots due to the state’s minimum wage. Flippy worked one day ...
Governor’s Final May Revise Par for the Course for Brown 2.0
On Friday, Governor Brown released his final “May Revise” budget proposal. For those who aren’t fluent in government-ese, the May Revise is the Governor’s revised budget proposal, taking into account updated tax receipts, economic trends, and budget needs. It’s from this proposal that the Brown Administration will negotiate a final ...
What We’re Watching – Will A Carbon Tax Increase the Cost of a Sandwich?
Tim Anaya – Will A Carbon Tax Increase the Cost of a Sandwich? One idea for a new tax that is floated around from time to time in California and Washington is a carbon tax. Recently, our friends at the Texas Public Policy Foundation put out a video showing the real ...
Not Much to Celebrate as California’s Economy Grows on Paper
California’s economy has now surpassed that of United Kingdom, making it the fifth-largest in the world if it were its own country. Despite this growth, and in contrast to the perception that all is well in California because the economy looks so robust, the Golden State’s economy is not quite ...
Is It A Bad Thing for State Workers to Save Taxpayers on Work Travel?
As the sharing economy has grown in California, we’re changing how we approach many common life transactions. When we’re looking for a repair person to fix a broken toilet, now we might look to Thumbtack to bid out of the job when before we would have called a traditional plumber ...
