Latest
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Three reasons why public pensions still need reform
Despite realizing excellent investment returns in 2021, public pension plans are still in need of reforms to prevent future debt and ensure they can pay out promised benefits.
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Privatization and Government Reform News: Transportation P3s, solutions for space debris, and more
Plus: Capitol Hill’s spending spree continues amid inflation concerns, anticompetitive California EMS bill gets (some) redemption, and more.
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Putting a year of good investment returns for public pension plans in perspective
This year's exceptionally high investment returns are good news for struggling pension plans, but they do not mean all is right in the public pension world.
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Aviation Policy News: Responses to airport lease study, airport security since 9/11, and more
Plus: Airport security since the 9/11 attacks, how climate change policies impact air travel, a better way to deal with in-flight turbulence, and more.
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California passes EMS bill but doesn’t address anti-competitive landscape
If fire agencies want to fully take over emergency medical services, they should face a competitive landscape that ensures they are tested against the best competition in the EMS industry.
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The FDA has decimated the e-cigarette market
The FDA has not authorized a single e-cigarette for sale and denied more than a million vape products from the market.
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California’s failed mandates offer some lessons for President Biden’s vaccine mandate
The Biden administration could save America from a lot of regulatory, legal and political fighting over its proposed COVID-19 vaccine mandate by recognizing how this mandate approach failed in California in the past.
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Ohio’s teacher retirement system lacks investment transparency
For the 2020 fiscal year, STRS reported paying $175 million in fees to alternative investment managers.
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Delaware tries to improve transparency on state spending
Delaware's Gray Fox will contain ARPA spending data from the state, 19 K-12 school districts, 23 charter schools, three counties, and 57 municipalities.
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Comments on the proposed pesticide experimental use permit for Oxitec
The EPA should move forward as quickly as possible in approving Oxitec’s request for an experimental use permit to undertake additional field trials in Florida and California.
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Surface Transportation News: Problems with electric vehicles, freight rail innovation in jeopardy, and more
Plus: Virginia embraces per-mile charging, the return on investment for passenger rail systems, and more.
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Federal legalization of marijuana and the Commerce Clause
The most expeditious method of legalizing marijuana at the federal level is to deem any state-approved marijuana product acceptable for trade in interstate commerce.
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New Hampshire’s innovative program to let students learn everywhere
Education is more than just direct instruction and textbooks—learning can happen everywhere.
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New York wisely lowers the state’s assumed rate of return for public pension investments
The plan’s new assumed rate of investment return of 5.9 percent will be the second-lowest investment return assumption among the country’s 130 largest state and local pension plans.
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Infrastructure funds are ready to invest in US airports
This public-private partnership airport lease model has about a 30-year track record worldwide. It’s overdue to start getting adopted in the United States.
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School choice needs to be more than an escape hatch for kids in failing public schools
The next step in school choice is to embrace education funding models that appeal to families looking for a way to customize and have more control over their student’s education wherever they are at.
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Paying down its debt should be a priority for California
California’s flush financial situation was an opportunity to use the surplus to pay down some of the wall of debt.
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FDA needs to embrace vaping’s potential to improve public health
Vaping is beyond doubt safer than smoking and has proved incredibly effective at helping people quit smoking traditional cigarettes.
