California
Blog
Read our latest State Budget Update
Senate Dem Plan to “Shrink the Shortfall” is Destined to Fail
With California’s budget deficit now surpassing $73 billion according to the latest estimates from the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s office, it’s clear that legislators will have to make significant mid-year budget adjustments even before the Governor’s May Revise is released. As PRI has written before, a budget problem of this magnitude ...
Wayne Winegarden and Tim Anaya
March 18, 2024
Blog
What do the California primary results mean?
Wake Us When It’s Over – A Few Takeaways from the California Primary
Legendary journalists Jules Witcover and the late Jack Germond, famous political columnists from an era past, wrote several terrific books chronicling presidential campaigns. I was reminded of one of the titles of their books when thinking about this year’s California primary – wake us when it’s over! Despite hundreds of ...
Tim Anaya
March 11, 2024
Blog
Spending Watch
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth Wayne Winegarden March 2024 With the introduction of AB 2200, advocates are, once again, proposing that California adopt a single payer healthcare system. Ostensibly, their proposed CalCare system would streamline payments, lower per-capita spending, guarantee “quality health care ...
Wayne Winegarden
March 8, 2024
California
PRI Files Amicus Brief in Major Supreme Court Case on Homeless Crisis
Click here to download a copy of PRI’s amicus brief in the case PRI’s amicus brief presents two core arguments for why the Court should overturn the 9th Circuit ruling and allow Grants Pass and other cities to enforce anti-encampment ordinances: Anti-Vagrancy Laws Have a Long History of Enforcement: As ...
Pacific Research Institute
March 6, 2024
Blog
Read about push for new housing regulations
Another Housing Package Destined To Fail
Democratic Assemblyman Alex Lee of the 24th District has produced a collection of housing legislation intended, says his team, “to address the housing crisis by protecting California’s homeownership opportunities and tenants’ rights, creating social housing for all.” Oh, “and much more.” Lee’s package of seven bills is yet another effort ...
Kerry Jackson
March 6, 2024
Agriculture
Rea Hederman – Net-Zero Climate-Control Policies Fail Farmers and Families
Our guest this week is Rea Hederman, executive director of the Economic Research Center and vice president of policy at The Buckeye Institute, a free market think tank based in Ohio. Its new report, “Net-Zero Climate-Control Policies Fail Farmers and Families” looks at the impact the Biden administration’s climate-control ...
Pacific Research Institute
March 4, 2024
Blog
Spending Watch
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem Wayne Winegarden March 2024 This analysis is the first publication of Spending Watch, a new initiative from the Pacific Research Institute. Spending Watch is a resource that evaluates the revenue, spending, and economic impacts of major budget and ...
Wayne Winegarden
March 1, 2024
California
Steve Hilton – Keynote Address: PRI Ideas in Action Conference
Our podcast guest this week is Steve Hilton, the keynote speaker at PRI’s 2024 Sacramento Ideas in Action Conference. Steve was a top advisor to UK Prime Minister David Cameron, a contributor at Fox News, and now running “Golden Together” a group focused on new ideas to increase affordable housing ...
Pacific Research Institute
February 26, 2024
Blog
Read latest State Budget Update
Newsom’s Budget Plan Sinks in Deficit Quicksand
Gov. Newsom’s budget problems continue to grow worse. After rolling out his $292 billion proposed state budget plan by arguing with the state’s respected independent budget analyst over the size of the deficit, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office has more bad news for Newsom about the deficit. On Friday, Newsom’s ...
Tim Anaya
February 22, 2024
California
Blame slow-growth policies for California’s housing and homeless crises
By Steven Greenhut & Wayne Winegarden The roots of California’s housing problems aren’t hard to trace given the reams of house-price and population data going back decades. The Los Angeles Times reported the median price of a California home in 1970 was only 5 percent higher than the national average at $24,300. That ...
Pacific Research Institute
February 20, 2024
Read our latest State Budget Update
Senate Dem Plan to “Shrink the Shortfall” is Destined to Fail
With California’s budget deficit now surpassing $73 billion according to the latest estimates from the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s office, it’s clear that legislators will have to make significant mid-year budget adjustments even before the Governor’s May Revise is released. As PRI has written before, a budget problem of this magnitude ...
What do the California primary results mean?
Wake Us When It’s Over – A Few Takeaways from the California Primary
Legendary journalists Jules Witcover and the late Jack Germond, famous political columnists from an era past, wrote several terrific books chronicling presidential campaigns. I was reminded of one of the titles of their books when thinking about this year’s California primary – wake us when it’s over! Despite hundreds of ...
Spending Watch
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth Wayne Winegarden March 2024 With the introduction of AB 2200, advocates are, once again, proposing that California adopt a single payer healthcare system. Ostensibly, their proposed CalCare system would streamline payments, lower per-capita spending, guarantee “quality health care ...
PRI Files Amicus Brief in Major Supreme Court Case on Homeless Crisis
Click here to download a copy of PRI’s amicus brief in the case PRI’s amicus brief presents two core arguments for why the Court should overturn the 9th Circuit ruling and allow Grants Pass and other cities to enforce anti-encampment ordinances: Anti-Vagrancy Laws Have a Long History of Enforcement: As ...
Read about push for new housing regulations
Another Housing Package Destined To Fail
Democratic Assemblyman Alex Lee of the 24th District has produced a collection of housing legislation intended, says his team, “to address the housing crisis by protecting California’s homeownership opportunities and tenants’ rights, creating social housing for all.” Oh, “and much more.” Lee’s package of seven bills is yet another effort ...
Rea Hederman – Net-Zero Climate-Control Policies Fail Farmers and Families
Our guest this week is Rea Hederman, executive director of the Economic Research Center and vice president of policy at The Buckeye Institute, a free market think tank based in Ohio. Its new report, “Net-Zero Climate-Control Policies Fail Farmers and Families” looks at the impact the Biden administration’s climate-control ...
Spending Watch
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem Wayne Winegarden March 2024 This analysis is the first publication of Spending Watch, a new initiative from the Pacific Research Institute. Spending Watch is a resource that evaluates the revenue, spending, and economic impacts of major budget and ...
Steve Hilton – Keynote Address: PRI Ideas in Action Conference
Our podcast guest this week is Steve Hilton, the keynote speaker at PRI’s 2024 Sacramento Ideas in Action Conference. Steve was a top advisor to UK Prime Minister David Cameron, a contributor at Fox News, and now running “Golden Together” a group focused on new ideas to increase affordable housing ...
Read latest State Budget Update
Newsom’s Budget Plan Sinks in Deficit Quicksand
Gov. Newsom’s budget problems continue to grow worse. After rolling out his $292 billion proposed state budget plan by arguing with the state’s respected independent budget analyst over the size of the deficit, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office has more bad news for Newsom about the deficit. On Friday, Newsom’s ...
Blame slow-growth policies for California’s housing and homeless crises
By Steven Greenhut & Wayne Winegarden The roots of California’s housing problems aren’t hard to trace given the reams of house-price and population data going back decades. The Los Angeles Times reported the median price of a California home in 1970 was only 5 percent higher than the national average at $24,300. That ...