Technology
Blog
Meet the obscure federal interagency committee who keeps an eye on foreign investment and national security
The United States tweet first, tariff second trade policy against China continues to define American -Chinese relations. As both nations pursue the “Cold War light” escalation through tariffs, the United States continues to drum up new regulations to combat Chinese economic influence. One policy the federal government is embracing is ...
Agriculture
Tales of Woe: How Dysfunctional Regulation Has Decimated Entire Sectors of Biotechnology
“To observe government is to observe the absence of accountability,” James Freeman wrote in the Wall Street Journal.1 That’s certainly true of unwise regulation of many innovative technologies; and modern biotechnology, also known as “genetic engineering (GE)” or “genetic modification (GM),” perhaps along with civilian applications of nuclear power, could be ...
Blog
Zuckerberg, Facebook Go Full Public Relations Blitz as Libra Stumbles
This summer, Facebook unveiled their plans to incorporate Libra, a digital cryptocurrency, into the Facebook platform. By the end of 2020, billions of Facebook users will be able to use Libra like any other currency. In previous Right by the Bay post, I wrote about Facebook’s announcement, highlighting some of ...
Commentary
Facing Down the Surveillance State
A ban on facial recognition software used by law enforcement or government agencies that started in San Francisco and Oakland has, in part, gone statewide. The Body Camera Accountability Act passed the California Legislature and was just signed into law by Gov. Newsom. The law puts in place a three-year ...
California
California’s AB 5 will kill the gig economy and force more companies to leave
Proposition 13 was called the political equivalent of a sonic boom by economist Art Laffer. In limiting how much local governments could drain from Californians through property taxes, fed-up voters changed the political landscape with the 1978 ballot measure in a way that few state policies have, before or since. ...
Blog
Is California’s Data Privacy Law a Ticking Time Bomb for Business?
With the deadline for California Governor Gavin Newsom to sign or veto legislation fast approaching, one public policy issue that received little to no attention at the end of California’s legislative session is the state’s pending data privacy law. In 2018, the California Consumer Privacy Act was made law when ...
Commentary
Technology Can Make Rural America Healthier
Recently, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg released a plan to improve health care in rural America. In a statement posted on his campaign website, he wrote, “Rural Americans are getting sicker and dying younger than people in cities.” He is right, but his plan misses the mark. Buttigieg wants to ...
Blog
California and a Global Standard for Innovation
Even though the state has slipped in the rankings over the past several years, California is still an innovation hub with an economy that is firmly grounded in innovative industries from videogames to internet, and technology hardware to movies. There are nearly 43 technology jobs per 1000 people in California. ...
Blog
Of Dumb Privacy Laws and Smart Speakers
Over the last couple of years, several state legislatures have considered online privacy legislation. Most of these efforts failed, including in California, but the misguided effort was brought back by a San Francisco real estate developer, Alastair MacTaggart, with no expertise in privacy law or legislation. He spent his millions ...
Blog
Yet Another Bad Policy Idea for California: San Francisco Proposes An ‘IPO’ Tax
Anyone thinking that California can’t become more anti-business or add another punitive tax hasn’t seen the recent news out of San Francisco. Political leaders there are campaigning for an increase in the city’s “IPO tax,” which is both unnecessary and counterproductive. The proposal, sponsored by Supervisor Gordon Mar, would hike ...
Meet the obscure federal interagency committee who keeps an eye on foreign investment and national security
The United States tweet first, tariff second trade policy against China continues to define American -Chinese relations. As both nations pursue the “Cold War light” escalation through tariffs, the United States continues to drum up new regulations to combat Chinese economic influence. One policy the federal government is embracing is ...
Tales of Woe: How Dysfunctional Regulation Has Decimated Entire Sectors of Biotechnology
“To observe government is to observe the absence of accountability,” James Freeman wrote in the Wall Street Journal.1 That’s certainly true of unwise regulation of many innovative technologies; and modern biotechnology, also known as “genetic engineering (GE)” or “genetic modification (GM),” perhaps along with civilian applications of nuclear power, could be ...
Zuckerberg, Facebook Go Full Public Relations Blitz as Libra Stumbles
This summer, Facebook unveiled their plans to incorporate Libra, a digital cryptocurrency, into the Facebook platform. By the end of 2020, billions of Facebook users will be able to use Libra like any other currency. In previous Right by the Bay post, I wrote about Facebook’s announcement, highlighting some of ...
Facing Down the Surveillance State
A ban on facial recognition software used by law enforcement or government agencies that started in San Francisco and Oakland has, in part, gone statewide. The Body Camera Accountability Act passed the California Legislature and was just signed into law by Gov. Newsom. The law puts in place a three-year ...
California’s AB 5 will kill the gig economy and force more companies to leave
Proposition 13 was called the political equivalent of a sonic boom by economist Art Laffer. In limiting how much local governments could drain from Californians through property taxes, fed-up voters changed the political landscape with the 1978 ballot measure in a way that few state policies have, before or since. ...
Is California’s Data Privacy Law a Ticking Time Bomb for Business?
With the deadline for California Governor Gavin Newsom to sign or veto legislation fast approaching, one public policy issue that received little to no attention at the end of California’s legislative session is the state’s pending data privacy law. In 2018, the California Consumer Privacy Act was made law when ...
Technology Can Make Rural America Healthier
Recently, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg released a plan to improve health care in rural America. In a statement posted on his campaign website, he wrote, “Rural Americans are getting sicker and dying younger than people in cities.” He is right, but his plan misses the mark. Buttigieg wants to ...
California and a Global Standard for Innovation
Even though the state has slipped in the rankings over the past several years, California is still an innovation hub with an economy that is firmly grounded in innovative industries from videogames to internet, and technology hardware to movies. There are nearly 43 technology jobs per 1000 people in California. ...
Of Dumb Privacy Laws and Smart Speakers
Over the last couple of years, several state legislatures have considered online privacy legislation. Most of these efforts failed, including in California, but the misguided effort was brought back by a San Francisco real estate developer, Alastair MacTaggart, with no expertise in privacy law or legislation. He spent his millions ...
Yet Another Bad Policy Idea for California: San Francisco Proposes An ‘IPO’ Tax
Anyone thinking that California can’t become more anti-business or add another punitive tax hasn’t seen the recent news out of San Francisco. Political leaders there are campaigning for an increase in the city’s “IPO tax,” which is both unnecessary and counterproductive. The proposal, sponsored by Supervisor Gordon Mar, would hike ...
