California

Blog

With California’s Rising Gas Prices, Driving Won’t Be So ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ This Summer

She drives real fast and she drives real hard, She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard. — The Little Old Lady from Pasadena, The Beach Boys, 1964 I loved this song when I was growing up, and I love it even more now that PRI’s Southern California office is on the ...
Blog

Will Sports Betting Ruling Be a New Gold Rush for California?

That sound you hear is the rush of California politicians and various moneyed interests racing to try and take advantage of a recent Supreme Court ruling paving the way for sports betting in every state. On May 14, the Court struck down a federal law passed in the early 1990’s ...
Commentary

The State’s Dangerous Flirtation with Drug Rationing

Massachusetts may soon stop paying for some of the lifesaving medicines its poorest residents count on. State officials recently requested permission from the federal government to restructure MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program. If their waiver is approved, a small group of state bureaucrats will determine which drugs are off limits ...
Blog

Could Court Case Gig the Gig Economy?

Businesses in California could use some good news, but one wonders when — and sometimes if — any will ever come. At the same time, there seems to be no end to the bad news, at least when government authorities are involved. The most recent example is a California Supreme ...
Blog

Connecting the Dots After a Trip to the Home Depot

A couple of Saturdays ago, I had to make a trip to my neighborhood Home Depot to pick up a few gardening supplies to do some work in the backyard. While looking for a replacement hose for my drip watering system (see, I am water efficient despite my blog post ...
Blog

What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel

What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel While America was obsessed this week with whether we heard Yanny or Laurel (and I hear Yanny for the record), I was busy watching other things online.  If you’re interested – or don’t know what the heck I’m talking about – watch ...
Blog

Legislature Still Has Chance to Eliminate Unnecessary Barriers to Work

Cutting, styling, shampooing, and curling hair properly takes some practice. But how much before a person is skilled enough to obtain a license to perform those tasks in California? The state says at least 1,500 hours of training are needed. Common-sense says far fewer. In California, a cosmetologist is required ...
Business & Economics

Will Swaim – Is Worker Freedom On the Horizon in California?

California Policy Center head Will Swaim joins us to discuss the effort to increase worker freedom in California.  We explore the Janus case pending before the Supreme Court, efforts to expand pension reform and government transparency, and the 2018 campaign – and stay tuned for his gourmet coffee recommendations.
Business & Economics

Read Wayne Winegarden in SD Union-Tribune & LA Times on Growing San Diego Wealth Gap

Wealth gap grows in San Diego, report says By Phillip Molnar Also published in Los Angeles Times If you feel left behind in San Diego’s economy, you’re not alone. The gap between the have and have-not’s in San Diego was the ninth-highest out of 100 cities between 2011 to 2016, said ...
Agriculture

If California Wants to Resist, Let’s Start with Trade Policy

Less than 32 percent of California voters who went to the polls on Election Day in 2016 pulled the lever for Donald Trump. These “deplorables” are probably delighted that Hillary Clinton isn’t president and pleased in general with how Trump has governed. Trump’s trade policies, though, should be another matter. ...
Blog

With California’s Rising Gas Prices, Driving Won’t Be So ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ This Summer

She drives real fast and she drives real hard, She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard. — The Little Old Lady from Pasadena, The Beach Boys, 1964 I loved this song when I was growing up, and I love it even more now that PRI’s Southern California office is on the ...
Blog

Will Sports Betting Ruling Be a New Gold Rush for California?

That sound you hear is the rush of California politicians and various moneyed interests racing to try and take advantage of a recent Supreme Court ruling paving the way for sports betting in every state. On May 14, the Court struck down a federal law passed in the early 1990’s ...
Commentary

The State’s Dangerous Flirtation with Drug Rationing

Massachusetts may soon stop paying for some of the lifesaving medicines its poorest residents count on. State officials recently requested permission from the federal government to restructure MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program. If their waiver is approved, a small group of state bureaucrats will determine which drugs are off limits ...
Blog

Could Court Case Gig the Gig Economy?

Businesses in California could use some good news, but one wonders when — and sometimes if — any will ever come. At the same time, there seems to be no end to the bad news, at least when government authorities are involved. The most recent example is a California Supreme ...
Blog

Connecting the Dots After a Trip to the Home Depot

A couple of Saturdays ago, I had to make a trip to my neighborhood Home Depot to pick up a few gardening supplies to do some work in the backyard. While looking for a replacement hose for my drip watering system (see, I am water efficient despite my blog post ...
Blog

What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel

What We’re Watching – Not Yanny or Laurel While America was obsessed this week with whether we heard Yanny or Laurel (and I hear Yanny for the record), I was busy watching other things online.  If you’re interested – or don’t know what the heck I’m talking about – watch ...
Blog

Legislature Still Has Chance to Eliminate Unnecessary Barriers to Work

Cutting, styling, shampooing, and curling hair properly takes some practice. But how much before a person is skilled enough to obtain a license to perform those tasks in California? The state says at least 1,500 hours of training are needed. Common-sense says far fewer. In California, a cosmetologist is required ...
Business & Economics

Will Swaim – Is Worker Freedom On the Horizon in California?

California Policy Center head Will Swaim joins us to discuss the effort to increase worker freedom in California.  We explore the Janus case pending before the Supreme Court, efforts to expand pension reform and government transparency, and the 2018 campaign – and stay tuned for his gourmet coffee recommendations.
Business & Economics

Read Wayne Winegarden in SD Union-Tribune & LA Times on Growing San Diego Wealth Gap

Wealth gap grows in San Diego, report says By Phillip Molnar Also published in Los Angeles Times If you feel left behind in San Diego’s economy, you’re not alone. The gap between the have and have-not’s in San Diego was the ninth-highest out of 100 cities between 2011 to 2016, said ...
Agriculture

If California Wants to Resist, Let’s Start with Trade Policy

Less than 32 percent of California voters who went to the polls on Election Day in 2016 pulled the lever for Donald Trump. These “deplorables” are probably delighted that Hillary Clinton isn’t president and pleased in general with how Trump has governed. Trump’s trade policies, though, should be another matter. ...
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