Spence Purnell
Director of Technology Policy, Reason Foundation
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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State Unemployment Websites Crash as COVID-19 Shines Light on Government Technology Failures
States need to prioritize creating more functional, advanced, and robust government websites and services that meet the needs of the taxpayers who pay for them.
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President Trump and Federal Agencies Botched Initial Coronavirus Response — Bailouts Will Make It Worse
Private businesses should not be operating under the premise that in a financial downturn, or even a crisis, they’ll quickly be bailed out by the federal government.
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What States Can Learn From Black Market THC Products Causing Vaping-Related Illnesses
Entrepreneurs have shown that not every potentially harmful situation necessitates government regulations and that market solutions can be quickly and effectively devised.
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States Handing Out Economic Development Incentives Aren’t Getting Results
Taxpayers deserve to know exactly how much is being spent by governments on incentive and tax break programs and what the return on that public investment exactly is.
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What States Can Learn From California’s Expensive Financial Information System Failures
States possess vast amounts of financial and non-financial data, and the best way forward to manage all types of data would be to implement an Open, Public, Electronic, and Necessary (OPEN) data policy.
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How Cities Often Overstate the Economic Impact of Events and Facilities
Visit Sarasota estimates the World Rowing Championship generated $22 million in economic impact, while the official body of the championships calculated an impact of $7 million.
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Consideration of XBRL and Structured Disclosures by Municipal Issuers
The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board should accept and display Inline XBRL disclosures.
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Missouri and Kansas End Economic Border War
Missouri and Kansas reach deal to stop using subsidies and tax incentives to get businesses to move across state lines.
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It Is Time to Stop Drug Testing Parolees and Probationers for Marijuana
Drug testing for marijuana does not serve public safety, imposes economic costs, and unnecessarily restricts civil liberties.