Commentary
Business & Economics
Digital TV Mandate Is Proving Costly for American Consumers, Business
The Congressionally mandated switchover to digital TV is proving costly to both consumers and the industry, analysts say. The taxpayer-funded program to provide subsidies to TV owners for the switchover, the Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Program, allots every U.S. household two coupons towards the purchase of the boxes, which are required ...
Commentary
Maryland Tax Records Are Scoured for SCHIP Eligible
Health officials in Maryland are working with state Comptroller Peter Franchot to identify children eligible for, but not enrolled in, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The comptroller’s office will use state income tax records to locate families whose incomes qualify their children for enrollment. The heads of eligible ...
Business & Economics
New Orleans Will Shutter its Muni Wi-Fi
New Orleans has lost its municipal wi-fi system as its primary provider, Earthlink, decided to exit the sector altogether. The city government chose not to take over the system, which ceased operations effective May 18. City officials have not responded to requests to explain their decision, but the ongoing challenges ...
Business & Economics
Competitor’s Court Challenge Could Raise Intel Chip Prices
Info Tech & Telecom News (Heartland Institute), July 1, 2008 Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) has accused Intel Corporation of paying and pressuring large computer manufacturers not to purchase AMD chips. AMD, based in Sunnyvale, California, claims Intel is marketing its computer chips to manufacturers at below-cost prices to ...
Business & Economics
Google Wants FCC to Force Open Access Rules on Verizon
Leading Web search provider Google has filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to deny communications services provider Verizon the C-block spectrum it won at auction unless Verizon provides assurances it will comply with Google’s interpretation of open access provisions. The petition, filed May 2, cited Verizon’s “two ...
Business & Economics
Senate Housing Bill Allows Government to Spy on Internet Commerce
The bipartisan housing bill currently being debated in the Senate contains an unrelated amendment that will burden innovative Internet companies and threaten the civil liberties of every American. Without any discussion, Senators added a provision to H.R. 3221 (The American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008) requiring electronic ...
Business & Economics
California City Will Take Over Abandoned Muni Wi-Fi System
The city council of Milpitas, California has unanimously approved a city takeover of the municipal wi-fi system installed a year ago by Earthlink. The company is abandoning the Milpitas infrastructure as it exits the muni wi-fi sector nationwide. Milpitas plans to maintain and operate the wi-fi system purely for city ...
Business & Economics
Impact – June 2008
PRI Ideas in Action – June 2008 Policy Update and Monthly Impact Report PRI continues to impact public policy in California, the nation, and abroad. Click below to view PRI’s recent contributions. Read PDF
Commentary
Bankruptcy of Government-Monopoly Health Care is Fiscal & Moral
California politicians like Senator Sheila Kuehl believe that they can run health care better than Californians themselves can. Here’s a question for anyone tempted to believe this: Will the government-monopoly health care “system” work better or worse than Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program? The news on Medi-Cal gets grimmer by ...
Business & Economics
Grassroots effort help stops ‘Lawyers Get Work Act’
Living in Illinois, it is hard to fathom how anyone could seriously think there are not enough lawsuits filed in our state. Just in the last few months, three nationwide studies have been released, and the results clearly confirm Illinois’ reputation as the “Lawsuit Capital of the Midwest.” One report ...
Digital TV Mandate Is Proving Costly for American Consumers, Business
The Congressionally mandated switchover to digital TV is proving costly to both consumers and the industry, analysts say. The taxpayer-funded program to provide subsidies to TV owners for the switchover, the Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Program, allots every U.S. household two coupons towards the purchase of the boxes, which are required ...
Maryland Tax Records Are Scoured for SCHIP Eligible
Health officials in Maryland are working with state Comptroller Peter Franchot to identify children eligible for, but not enrolled in, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The comptroller’s office will use state income tax records to locate families whose incomes qualify their children for enrollment. The heads of eligible ...
New Orleans Will Shutter its Muni Wi-Fi
New Orleans has lost its municipal wi-fi system as its primary provider, Earthlink, decided to exit the sector altogether. The city government chose not to take over the system, which ceased operations effective May 18. City officials have not responded to requests to explain their decision, but the ongoing challenges ...
Competitor’s Court Challenge Could Raise Intel Chip Prices
Info Tech & Telecom News (Heartland Institute), July 1, 2008 Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) has accused Intel Corporation of paying and pressuring large computer manufacturers not to purchase AMD chips. AMD, based in Sunnyvale, California, claims Intel is marketing its computer chips to manufacturers at below-cost prices to ...
Google Wants FCC to Force Open Access Rules on Verizon
Leading Web search provider Google has filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to deny communications services provider Verizon the C-block spectrum it won at auction unless Verizon provides assurances it will comply with Google’s interpretation of open access provisions. The petition, filed May 2, cited Verizon’s “two ...
Senate Housing Bill Allows Government to Spy on Internet Commerce
The bipartisan housing bill currently being debated in the Senate contains an unrelated amendment that will burden innovative Internet companies and threaten the civil liberties of every American. Without any discussion, Senators added a provision to H.R. 3221 (The American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008) requiring electronic ...
California City Will Take Over Abandoned Muni Wi-Fi System
The city council of Milpitas, California has unanimously approved a city takeover of the municipal wi-fi system installed a year ago by Earthlink. The company is abandoning the Milpitas infrastructure as it exits the muni wi-fi sector nationwide. Milpitas plans to maintain and operate the wi-fi system purely for city ...
Impact – June 2008
PRI Ideas in Action – June 2008 Policy Update and Monthly Impact Report PRI continues to impact public policy in California, the nation, and abroad. Click below to view PRI’s recent contributions. Read PDF
Bankruptcy of Government-Monopoly Health Care is Fiscal & Moral
California politicians like Senator Sheila Kuehl believe that they can run health care better than Californians themselves can. Here’s a question for anyone tempted to believe this: Will the government-monopoly health care “system” work better or worse than Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program? The news on Medi-Cal gets grimmer by ...
Grassroots effort help stops ‘Lawyers Get Work Act’
Living in Illinois, it is hard to fathom how anyone could seriously think there are not enough lawsuits filed in our state. Just in the last few months, three nationwide studies have been released, and the results clearly confirm Illinois’ reputation as the “Lawsuit Capital of the Midwest.” One report ...
