Blog
Blog
Read about an innovative new California school
New School Year, New Hope for At-Risk Students
I report on a lot of bad news about education in California, which is why it was so invigorating to attend the inaugural opening day of Cristo Rey Orange County, an innovative Catholic school that combines rigorous academics with a unique work-study program that has proved successful for countless students ...
Blog
Read about controversial Sacramento Forward plan
So-Called Sacramento Forward Plan Would Take City Backwards on Housing, Homelessness
In my most recent blog, I documented the city of Sacramento’s worsening homeless problem, and the inaction by city leaders to get the problem under control. Now entering the policy void are a troika of left-wing city councilmembers who have put forward a plan called “Sacramento Forward” that would be ...
Blog
America’s future cities: A case for decentralization
America’s future cities: A case for decentralization As the virulence of the COVID pandemic subsided in 2020, a new phrase, “urban doom loop,” became a common way to describe the failure of America’s downtowns to recover economically. The concept is simple enough. As occupancy in downtown buildings declines, businesses that ...
Blog
Read latest from Free Cities Center
Misusing ‘externality’ theories to bolster government power
In a recent article, economist Timothy D. Terrell pointed out problems in modern economic theory that deal with what economists call externalities, or spillover costs, noting that in a world in which value is subjective, attempts to find objective ways to allay costs are elusive and generally end in failure. ...
Blog
Read latest on California's growing crime problem
Murders are up – We’re just dying less.
Writing for The Atlantic recently, Jeff Asher predicted that, “The United States may be experiencing one of the largest annual percent changes in murder ever recorded, according to my preliminary data.” That’s a bold statement and will undoubtedly be used to evaluate the effectiveness of criminal justice policies around the ...
Blog
Read about latest minimum wage push
New Proposal Would Raise Minimum Wage to $30 for Theme Park, Hotel Workers
Board Chair Janice Hahn and Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath have ginned up a minimum-wage hike for hotel and theme park employees working at sites in unincorporated parts of the county. The idea was introduced at the Board’s Aug. 8 meeting and will be considered as a motion on Sept. 12. ...
Blog
Read about latest attacks on charter schools
Los Angeles and Oakland Get “F” Grades for Charter Funding Gaps
The University of Arkansas study compared funding for regular public schools and charter schools in 18 cities across the country using 2019-2020 budget data. Historically, regular public schools have been funded more generously than charter schools, which are autonomous publicly funded schools independent of school districts, but that gap is ...
Blog
California’s jitney experience can guide its future
California’s jitney experience can guide its future If other nations can support a modern, private bus industry, so can the Golden State Scott Beyer | August 18, 2023 California mass transit is mostly provided by government transit authorities. The regime has been costly to taxpayers and unsuccessful, if declining ridership ...
Blog
To protect and reform: How to fix urban police departments
After the death of George Floyd during a police encounter in Minneapolis three years ago on Memorial Day weekend, it sparked protests both salutary and sanguinary. Peaceful protests sometimes turned violent. And a national soul-searching began, including investigations into police procedures – such as the choke hold that killed Floyd ...
Blog
Read latest about state pension problem
ESG and CalPERS Sub-par Investment Returns
CalPERS has one core social responsibility – maximizing returns to help secure the retirement of millions of current and future pensioners. The pension fund is also a major proponent of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing. CalPERS claims that ESG “disclosures provide important metrics to understand how a company’s practices ...
Read about an innovative new California school
New School Year, New Hope for At-Risk Students
I report on a lot of bad news about education in California, which is why it was so invigorating to attend the inaugural opening day of Cristo Rey Orange County, an innovative Catholic school that combines rigorous academics with a unique work-study program that has proved successful for countless students ...
Read about controversial Sacramento Forward plan
So-Called Sacramento Forward Plan Would Take City Backwards on Housing, Homelessness
In my most recent blog, I documented the city of Sacramento’s worsening homeless problem, and the inaction by city leaders to get the problem under control. Now entering the policy void are a troika of left-wing city councilmembers who have put forward a plan called “Sacramento Forward” that would be ...
America’s future cities: A case for decentralization
America’s future cities: A case for decentralization As the virulence of the COVID pandemic subsided in 2020, a new phrase, “urban doom loop,” became a common way to describe the failure of America’s downtowns to recover economically. The concept is simple enough. As occupancy in downtown buildings declines, businesses that ...
Read latest from Free Cities Center
Misusing ‘externality’ theories to bolster government power
In a recent article, economist Timothy D. Terrell pointed out problems in modern economic theory that deal with what economists call externalities, or spillover costs, noting that in a world in which value is subjective, attempts to find objective ways to allay costs are elusive and generally end in failure. ...
Read latest on California's growing crime problem
Murders are up – We’re just dying less.
Writing for The Atlantic recently, Jeff Asher predicted that, “The United States may be experiencing one of the largest annual percent changes in murder ever recorded, according to my preliminary data.” That’s a bold statement and will undoubtedly be used to evaluate the effectiveness of criminal justice policies around the ...
Read about latest minimum wage push
New Proposal Would Raise Minimum Wage to $30 for Theme Park, Hotel Workers
Board Chair Janice Hahn and Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath have ginned up a minimum-wage hike for hotel and theme park employees working at sites in unincorporated parts of the county. The idea was introduced at the Board’s Aug. 8 meeting and will be considered as a motion on Sept. 12. ...
Read about latest attacks on charter schools
Los Angeles and Oakland Get “F” Grades for Charter Funding Gaps
The University of Arkansas study compared funding for regular public schools and charter schools in 18 cities across the country using 2019-2020 budget data. Historically, regular public schools have been funded more generously than charter schools, which are autonomous publicly funded schools independent of school districts, but that gap is ...
California’s jitney experience can guide its future
California’s jitney experience can guide its future If other nations can support a modern, private bus industry, so can the Golden State Scott Beyer | August 18, 2023 California mass transit is mostly provided by government transit authorities. The regime has been costly to taxpayers and unsuccessful, if declining ridership ...
To protect and reform: How to fix urban police departments
After the death of George Floyd during a police encounter in Minneapolis three years ago on Memorial Day weekend, it sparked protests both salutary and sanguinary. Peaceful protests sometimes turned violent. And a national soul-searching began, including investigations into police procedures – such as the choke hold that killed Floyd ...
Read latest about state pension problem
ESG and CalPERS Sub-par Investment Returns
CalPERS has one core social responsibility – maximizing returns to help secure the retirement of millions of current and future pensioners. The pension fund is also a major proponent of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing. CalPERS claims that ESG “disclosures provide important metrics to understand how a company’s practices ...
