Lawrence J. McQuillan
Business & Economics
Governor should ground tax proposal
Gov. Jerry Brown wants to increase sales and income taxes in a quest to “find another $10 billion” in revenue. He will have to craft a plan soon to get it on the 2012 ballot. To help California’s struggling economy, any tax proposals should be rooted in sound economics, which
Business & Economics
Defensive Medicine
The article “Study: Only 1 in 5 medical malpractice cases pay” (Tribune, Aug. 17) reported that “most physicians and virtually every surgeon will face at least one malpractice lawsuit in their careers.” This alarming statistic is an important driver of rising U.S. health care costs. Even though most sued doctors
Business & Economics
Taxpayers Pick Up NYC’s $6B Lawsuits Bill
New York City doled out an astounding $6 billion in judgments and settlements in 10 years, some for bizarre claims of injury resulting from biting in a kindergarten classroom, tripping in a Lincoln Center parking lot, and slipping on bus steps, according to the New York Post. Last year alone,
Business & Economics
Unfounded fears threaten energy success story
Researchers at MIT recently forecast that natural gas production from five American shale reserves would double in five years and triple in 20. These U.S. sources of gas can transform America’s energy outlook, provided lawmakers don’t interfere with the process. Shale formations created from sea basins millions of years ago
Business & Economics
The Truth About Energy Profits
America’s largest oil and natural gas companies recently reported quarterly earnings, and as expected, profits were up. But the caricature of fat-cat energy executives lining their pockets at the expense of the everyman doesn’t hold up to scrutiny. ExxonMobil posted quarterly earnings of $10.7 billion on Thursday, up 69 percent
Business & Economics
Bashing Oil Industry is Counterproductive
In a recent speech, President Obama set a goal to reduce America’s oil imports by a third by 2025 — about 3 million to 4 million barrels a day. Unfortunately, Obama’s own energy policies undercut his goal. To reduce America’s dependence on foreign sources, domestic energy producers will need to
Business & Economics
Open Government Requires More Sunshine
The city of Bell pay scandal highlighted serious flaws in California’s open-government laws. Now a proposed constitutional change wants the people to guarantee more sunshine to the Golden State. That’s how government openness was achieved in the past, through action by citizens and news organizations. After World War II, it
Business & Economics
Why Brown should strengthen state transparency laws
At a recent California community colleges board meeting, Gov. Jerry Brown said transparency is key to increasing voter trust in government and would help pass his tax-extension plan. He’s right, but national sunshine week slipped by without Brown proposing any reforms to strengthen state sunshine laws. Instead, he worked to
Business & Economics
Deal with it: We’ll need oil, gas for decades
Oil prices climbed back over $100 per barrel last week. When news like this breaks, pundits and policy wonks on both sides of the political spectrum argue we should depend less on oil and natural gas. But nobody has a believable plan to get there because of economic realities. If
Business & Economics
As Bell shows, public pay is the public’s business
During National Sunshine Week, the public continues to be outraged by the lavish salaries taken by former city officials in Bell. Fortunately, the city can teach important lessons on how to improve California’s transparency laws. The Bell scandal came to light using the 1968 California Public Records Act (CPRA), which
Governor should ground tax proposal
Gov. Jerry Brown wants to increase sales and income taxes in a quest to “find another $10 billion” in revenue. He will have to craft a plan soon to get it on the 2012 ballot. To help California’s struggling economy, any tax proposals should be rooted in sound economics, which
Defensive Medicine
The article “Study: Only 1 in 5 medical malpractice cases pay” (Tribune, Aug. 17) reported that “most physicians and virtually every surgeon will face at least one malpractice lawsuit in their careers.” This alarming statistic is an important driver of rising U.S. health care costs. Even though most sued doctors
Taxpayers Pick Up NYC’s $6B Lawsuits Bill
New York City doled out an astounding $6 billion in judgments and settlements in 10 years, some for bizarre claims of injury resulting from biting in a kindergarten classroom, tripping in a Lincoln Center parking lot, and slipping on bus steps, according to the New York Post. Last year alone,
Unfounded fears threaten energy success story
Researchers at MIT recently forecast that natural gas production from five American shale reserves would double in five years and triple in 20. These U.S. sources of gas can transform America’s energy outlook, provided lawmakers don’t interfere with the process. Shale formations created from sea basins millions of years ago
The Truth About Energy Profits
America’s largest oil and natural gas companies recently reported quarterly earnings, and as expected, profits were up. But the caricature of fat-cat energy executives lining their pockets at the expense of the everyman doesn’t hold up to scrutiny. ExxonMobil posted quarterly earnings of $10.7 billion on Thursday, up 69 percent
Bashing Oil Industry is Counterproductive
In a recent speech, President Obama set a goal to reduce America’s oil imports by a third by 2025 — about 3 million to 4 million barrels a day. Unfortunately, Obama’s own energy policies undercut his goal. To reduce America’s dependence on foreign sources, domestic energy producers will need to
Open Government Requires More Sunshine
The city of Bell pay scandal highlighted serious flaws in California’s open-government laws. Now a proposed constitutional change wants the people to guarantee more sunshine to the Golden State. That’s how government openness was achieved in the past, through action by citizens and news organizations. After World War II, it
Why Brown should strengthen state transparency laws
At a recent California community colleges board meeting, Gov. Jerry Brown said transparency is key to increasing voter trust in government and would help pass his tax-extension plan. He’s right, but national sunshine week slipped by without Brown proposing any reforms to strengthen state sunshine laws. Instead, he worked to
Deal with it: We’ll need oil, gas for decades
Oil prices climbed back over $100 per barrel last week. When news like this breaks, pundits and policy wonks on both sides of the political spectrum argue we should depend less on oil and natural gas. But nobody has a believable plan to get there because of economic realities. If
As Bell shows, public pay is the public’s business
During National Sunshine Week, the public continues to be outraged by the lavish salaries taken by former city officials in Bell. Fortunately, the city can teach important lessons on how to improve California’s transparency laws. The Bell scandal came to light using the 1968 California Public Records Act (CPRA), which
