Spence Purnell
Policy Analyst, Reason Foundation
Spence Purnell is a policy analyst at the Reason Foundation, where he works on pension reform, Florida policy issues and economic development.
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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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.
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Workers Need Education and Certification Programs to Match Today’s Job Market
Technology-related work certifications can directly plug workers into good jobs.
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Modernizing the Way States Collect and Store Data
Most states need to restructure their technology and data policies.