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Despite Jones Act, Gas Prices Are Even Lower in High-Cost Hawaii Compared to California

Recently, I enjoyed a week-long vacation in Hawaii.  One of the highlights of my trip was a circle island tour across Oahu. When driving through Waimanalo on our way to the Pali Lookout, I noticed a gas station selling regular unleaded for $5.08 per gallon.  In fact, Hawaii’s price was ...
Blog

If Cutting The Work Week By 20% Means More Productivity, Why Not Cut It By 50%, Or More?

Should California workers work fewer hours in the work week?  Some state lawmakers say yes. Under Assembly Bill 2932, the work week for companies with more than 500 employees would fall to 32 hours. Those working more than eight hours a day and 32 hours in a given week would ...
Commentary

Pay No Attention to the Healthcare Catastrophe Behind the Curtain

A new report from the Biden administration purports to be a clear-eyed assessment of where the Affordable Care Act stands after 12 years on the books. In fact, it’s a piece of pro-Obamacare propaganda — and an especially dishonest one at that. Titled “The State of the ACA,” the study opens with the ...
Blog

To Give Californians Real Relief from High Gas Prices, Sacramento Must Legislate Energy Prosperity

By Tim Anaya and Wayne Winegarden As of April 5, average state gas prices in California were $5.84 per gallon for regular, according to AAA, which were the nation’s highest average gas prices. Previously on Right by the Bay, we wrote about the one-upmanship between Democrats and Republicans in the ...
Blog

Can California Make Room for Home-Based Businesses?

According to a recent report by the Public Policy Institute of California, a startling one-in-four Californians now works remotely, with one-in-seven blending office and home-based work. And if you ask Californians what they prefer, a third say they would like to stay fully remote next year, while a quarter say ...
Business & Economics

NEW STUDY: Pandemic Response Grew Government ‘Barriers to Opportunity’ for Entrepreneurs

Government actions to “help” small businesses in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic have worsened pre-pandemic government-imposed burdens to entrepreneurship, finds the final paper in the Breaking Down Barriers to Opportunityseries released today by the nonpartisan Pacific Research Institute, a California-based, free-market think tank. Click here to download a copy ...
Blog

Who Will Benefit from the Great Gas Tax Rebate Debate of 2022?

By Tim Anaya and Wayne Winegarden The news that average gas prices per gallon in Los Angeles County have soared past $6 per gallon has triggered the “Great Gas Tax Rebate Debate of 2022.” Democrats and Republicans in Sacramento are pushing dueling gas tax relief proposals. Legislative Republicans have proposed ...
Business & Economics

Wealth Taxes are Economic Failures

By Wayne Winegarden and Kerry Jackson California Assemblymember Alex Lee should have studied Europe’s experiences before introducing his wealth tax proposal. Had he done so, he never would have introduced Assembly Bill 2289 that, if adopted, would impose 1% annual tax rate on couples with net worths exceeding $50 million and ...
Blog

AB 5 is Taking Away Opportunities for Communities of Color & Low-Income Communities

Editor’s Note:  On Monday, Dr. Wayne Winegarden, PRI senior fellow in Business and Economics, was invited to testify before the California advisory committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on the civil rights implications of California’s controversial AB 5.  Winegarden’s comments as written are presented below: Madam/Mister Chairperson, members ...
Business & Economics

The Problems with CEQA – with Chris Carr

The California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, is a 50-year-old law responsible for holding up many projects in the state due to its labyrinthian process and its vulnerability to lawsuits. Across the state, housing developments, schools, hospitals, even bike paths and wildfire mitigation efforts have been stymied by CEQA. Chris ...
Blog

Despite Jones Act, Gas Prices Are Even Lower in High-Cost Hawaii Compared to California

Recently, I enjoyed a week-long vacation in Hawaii.  One of the highlights of my trip was a circle island tour across Oahu. When driving through Waimanalo on our way to the Pali Lookout, I noticed a gas station selling regular unleaded for $5.08 per gallon.  In fact, Hawaii’s price was ...
Blog

If Cutting The Work Week By 20% Means More Productivity, Why Not Cut It By 50%, Or More?

Should California workers work fewer hours in the work week?  Some state lawmakers say yes. Under Assembly Bill 2932, the work week for companies with more than 500 employees would fall to 32 hours. Those working more than eight hours a day and 32 hours in a given week would ...
Commentary

Pay No Attention to the Healthcare Catastrophe Behind the Curtain

A new report from the Biden administration purports to be a clear-eyed assessment of where the Affordable Care Act stands after 12 years on the books. In fact, it’s a piece of pro-Obamacare propaganda — and an especially dishonest one at that. Titled “The State of the ACA,” the study opens with the ...
Blog

To Give Californians Real Relief from High Gas Prices, Sacramento Must Legislate Energy Prosperity

By Tim Anaya and Wayne Winegarden As of April 5, average state gas prices in California were $5.84 per gallon for regular, according to AAA, which were the nation’s highest average gas prices. Previously on Right by the Bay, we wrote about the one-upmanship between Democrats and Republicans in the ...
Blog

Can California Make Room for Home-Based Businesses?

According to a recent report by the Public Policy Institute of California, a startling one-in-four Californians now works remotely, with one-in-seven blending office and home-based work. And if you ask Californians what they prefer, a third say they would like to stay fully remote next year, while a quarter say ...
Business & Economics

NEW STUDY: Pandemic Response Grew Government ‘Barriers to Opportunity’ for Entrepreneurs

Government actions to “help” small businesses in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic have worsened pre-pandemic government-imposed burdens to entrepreneurship, finds the final paper in the Breaking Down Barriers to Opportunityseries released today by the nonpartisan Pacific Research Institute, a California-based, free-market think tank. Click here to download a copy ...
Blog

Who Will Benefit from the Great Gas Tax Rebate Debate of 2022?

By Tim Anaya and Wayne Winegarden The news that average gas prices per gallon in Los Angeles County have soared past $6 per gallon has triggered the “Great Gas Tax Rebate Debate of 2022.” Democrats and Republicans in Sacramento are pushing dueling gas tax relief proposals. Legislative Republicans have proposed ...
Business & Economics

Wealth Taxes are Economic Failures

By Wayne Winegarden and Kerry Jackson California Assemblymember Alex Lee should have studied Europe’s experiences before introducing his wealth tax proposal. Had he done so, he never would have introduced Assembly Bill 2289 that, if adopted, would impose 1% annual tax rate on couples with net worths exceeding $50 million and ...
Blog

AB 5 is Taking Away Opportunities for Communities of Color & Low-Income Communities

Editor’s Note:  On Monday, Dr. Wayne Winegarden, PRI senior fellow in Business and Economics, was invited to testify before the California advisory committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on the civil rights implications of California’s controversial AB 5.  Winegarden’s comments as written are presented below: Madam/Mister Chairperson, members ...
Business & Economics

The Problems with CEQA – with Chris Carr

The California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, is a 50-year-old law responsible for holding up many projects in the state due to its labyrinthian process and its vulnerability to lawsuits. Across the state, housing developments, schools, hospitals, even bike paths and wildfire mitigation efforts have been stymied by CEQA. Chris ...
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