Unemployment
Business & Economics
More taxes won’t fix state debt
The Golden State continues to lead the nation in accumulating public debt, a race where being in first place isn’t the same thing as winning. “California again trumped other states with a $617 billion debt,” reported State Budget Solutions, a nonpartisan organization advocating “fundamental reforms” for state budgets. For the ...
California
Implementing AB 32 will increase unemployment, household expenses
With the passage of California’s Assembly Bill 32, the Golden State has embarked upon an experiment in energy policy that has no modern parallel. Several recent studies have shown that the consequences to the state could be dire, and that California faces a choice between continuing on its current trajectory ...
Business & Economics
Brown should go back to idea of a flat tax to help economy
Gov. Jerry Brown just signed bills finalizing California’s budget and closing the Golden State’s $16 billion budget deficit. But the governor’s budget is contingent on voters approving a proposed $8.5 billion tax hike at the ballot box this November. If they don’t, some $6 billion in spending cuts will go ...
Business & Economics
Arthur B. Laffer: Right to work, wrong to tax in California
Gov. Jerry Brown just enacted a $91.3 billion budget measure to close California’s $16 billion deficit. After pleading with legislators to approve billions of dollars in spending cuts, he’s asking voters to approve major tax increases in November. If they don’t, some $6 billion in cuts would take effect in ...
Commentary
Obamacare drives up health care costs for everyone
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released their annual report on health care spending in America. And surprise, surprise – spending continues to grow. It amounted to 17.9 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product in 2010, or $2.6 trillion. But the annual rate of growth was lower ...
Medicaid
If Health Spending is Increasing Slower, Why Are Premiums Rising Faster?
Key Points: The rate of increase in private health spending has dropped significantly since the financial crisis hit in 2008, although government programs like Medicare and Medicaid have continued along their unsustainable path. However, administrative costs and private premiums began to increase immediately upon President Obama’s enacting the Patient Protection ...
Commentary
Forget The Doctor Fix, We Need A Medicare Fix
Just before they jetted off for the holidays, Congress and the president brokered a $33-billion deal that extends the payroll tax cut, provides additional unemployment benefits, and spares physicians from steep cuts in Medicare reimbursements. Unfortunately, the compromise simply postpones the day of reckoning for all three issues until March. ...
Agriculture
Can’t Live by Scenery Alone
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike,” wrote John Muir, in one of his many celebrations of the majesty of the Yosemite Valley. The Scottish-born founder of the Sierra Club recognized ...
Business & Economics
The Best States For Jobs
The Texas jobs miracle has received a lot of attention since Rick Perry announced his candidacy for president in August. The numbers are impressive. Texas added 1.2 million net jobs since Perry took office as Texas Governor in December 2000, while the U.S. as a whole lost 1.1 million jobs ...
Agriculture
Rural rebellion brewing
The nearly five-hour drive from the Sacramento area to Yreka, in Siskiyou County by the Oregon border, was a reminder not just of the immense size and beauty of California, but of the vast regional and cultural differences one finds within our 37-million-population state. Sacramento is Government Central, a land ...
More taxes won’t fix state debt
The Golden State continues to lead the nation in accumulating public debt, a race where being in first place isn’t the same thing as winning. “California again trumped other states with a $617 billion debt,” reported State Budget Solutions, a nonpartisan organization advocating “fundamental reforms” for state budgets. For the ...
Implementing AB 32 will increase unemployment, household expenses
With the passage of California’s Assembly Bill 32, the Golden State has embarked upon an experiment in energy policy that has no modern parallel. Several recent studies have shown that the consequences to the state could be dire, and that California faces a choice between continuing on its current trajectory ...
Brown should go back to idea of a flat tax to help economy
Gov. Jerry Brown just signed bills finalizing California’s budget and closing the Golden State’s $16 billion budget deficit. But the governor’s budget is contingent on voters approving a proposed $8.5 billion tax hike at the ballot box this November. If they don’t, some $6 billion in spending cuts will go ...
Arthur B. Laffer: Right to work, wrong to tax in California
Gov. Jerry Brown just enacted a $91.3 billion budget measure to close California’s $16 billion deficit. After pleading with legislators to approve billions of dollars in spending cuts, he’s asking voters to approve major tax increases in November. If they don’t, some $6 billion in cuts would take effect in ...
Obamacare drives up health care costs for everyone
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released their annual report on health care spending in America. And surprise, surprise – spending continues to grow. It amounted to 17.9 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product in 2010, or $2.6 trillion. But the annual rate of growth was lower ...
If Health Spending is Increasing Slower, Why Are Premiums Rising Faster?
Key Points: The rate of increase in private health spending has dropped significantly since the financial crisis hit in 2008, although government programs like Medicare and Medicaid have continued along their unsustainable path. However, administrative costs and private premiums began to increase immediately upon President Obama’s enacting the Patient Protection ...
Forget The Doctor Fix, We Need A Medicare Fix
Just before they jetted off for the holidays, Congress and the president brokered a $33-billion deal that extends the payroll tax cut, provides additional unemployment benefits, and spares physicians from steep cuts in Medicare reimbursements. Unfortunately, the compromise simply postpones the day of reckoning for all three issues until March. ...
Can’t Live by Scenery Alone
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike,” wrote John Muir, in one of his many celebrations of the majesty of the Yosemite Valley. The Scottish-born founder of the Sierra Club recognized ...
The Best States For Jobs
The Texas jobs miracle has received a lot of attention since Rick Perry announced his candidacy for president in August. The numbers are impressive. Texas added 1.2 million net jobs since Perry took office as Texas Governor in December 2000, while the U.S. as a whole lost 1.1 million jobs ...
Rural rebellion brewing
The nearly five-hour drive from the Sacramento area to Yreka, in Siskiyou County by the Oregon border, was a reminder not just of the immense size and beauty of California, but of the vast regional and cultural differences one finds within our 37-million-population state. Sacramento is Government Central, a land ...
