Spence Purnell is director of technology policy at the Reason Foundation.
Prior to joining Reason, Spence worked as director of business development at Florida startup Dealers United and as an analyst for the state of Florida's Executive Office of the Governor (Florida Gubernatorial Fellowship).
Spence graduated from Stetson University with a bachelors degree in political science and is working on an MPA at Florida State, where his research has focused on database infrastructure and analytics, economic development, and policy evaluation methods.
Purnell is based in Florida.
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Why States With Legalized Marijuana Should Allow Marijuana Lounges
There is an increasing need and consumer demand for lounges where marijuana products can be consumed.
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Marijuana Delivery: Addressing Concerns and Public Policy Issues
There is little reason to suggest that any of the social and economic costs potentially associated with legalization are exacerbated to any extent by allowing delivery services.
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A Common Sense Approach to Marijuana Therapy
Individuals and their doctors should be making appropriate marijuana therapy determinations.
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Market Size Estimates For Legalized Marijuana
Estimates for the potential size of a new legal marijuana market are often riddled with uncertainty and inaccuracy, and can also be skewed by tenuous assumptions.
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Florida Needs to Take Back Control, Approve More Cell Phone Providers for Lifeline Program
Outsourcing the approval process to the federal government has been a failure.
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State and Local Governments Should Mimic the Open, Public, Electronic, and Necessary (OPEN) Government Data Act
The new law requires federal agencies to publish data online in machine-readable data formats.
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Medical Marijuana Patients Are Being Denied Gun Rights
The absurdity of ATF's rules denying medical cannabis card holders the right to purchase guns, and what states can do about it.
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Don’t Let CalPERS’ CEO Scandal Divert Attention From the System’s Accomplishments
The largest pension fund in the country is facing a scandal over apparently false claims its CEO made on her employment application.
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Worries About Deficits Go Out the Window
Politicians have stopped talking about the federal government's fiscal predicament even though it is getting worse under the Trump administration and Republican Congress.
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Does Marijuana Legalization Increase Traffic Accidents?
Studies looking at the prevalence of drivers impaired by THC are prone to overestimate crash risk because of other risk factors.
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Do Capitalization Requirements Make Sense For The Cannabis Industry?
Small business owners without lots of capital deserve the opportunity to enter the industry without burdensome requirements that do not fulfill their intended purpose.
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Gambling With Taxpayer Money and Losing: Florida’s Business Incentives Program
Incentive programs fail because they do not account for the fact that the firms are highly volatile and prone to failure.
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Does Occupational Licensing Really Improve Public Health and Safety?
Who benefits by limiting entry into a job field? Those already working in the field, as it shields them from competition.
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Florida Says No to Power
Voters should demand the state open its electricity market to competition.
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Florida Passes First in the Nation Data Reporting Standards to Improve Local Government Financial Transparency
A new Florida law promises to greatly ease the task of gathering and analyzing local municipal finance statistics, including data on pension and other post-employment benefits.
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Florida’s Failed Business Incentives Offer a Cautionary Tale Of Gambling With Taxpayers’ Money
Despite spending more than their counterparts on job creation tax credits, the incentive-heavy counties realized no appreciable long-term gains in either gross or net job creation.
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Follow The Jobs: Assessing Florida’s Business Incentives Programs
The incentives programs, despite spending billions of taxpayer dollars, have not produced any meaningful or measurable positive economic outcomes for Floridians.
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Workers, Stagnant Wages and the Digital Jobs of Today
Real wages have grown tremendously over the last 15 years for those with technological skills.