This issue of Surface Transportation News is also available online here. In this issue: Experts spar over induced demand and freeway expansion Analysis, not knee-jerk reactions for Ohio train derailment Which state DOTs plan to fix major truck bottlenecks? TRB report on Black Americans and transportation Hyperloop startups losing ground How is Denver doing on Vision Zero? News Notes Quotable Quotes Experts Spar Over Induced Demand and Urban Freeway Expansion I-35 through downtown Austin is massively congested much of the day. That’s hardly surprising since both Austin and Texas have been growing by leaps and bounds for several decades …
Examining day-to-day crypto volatility and why it’s important
Few asset classes have been more volatile over the past several years than cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, trading above $20,000 at the time of this writing, exceeded $50,000 for two brief periods in 2021—and fell almost as low as $30,000 in between. Other high-profile cryptocurrencies, such as Ethereum and Dogecoin, have experienced similarly dramatic highs and lows. But cryptocurrencies are also exceptionally volatile over much shorter periods of time. Day-to-day price fluctuations of cryptocurrencies eclipse those of traditional currencies, stocks, and precious metals, and do so consistently across assets and time periods. This phenomenon is not entirely …
Testimony on Alaska House Bill 22
Testimony on Alaska House Bill 22 (HB 22) submitted to the Alaska House State Affairs Committee. Good morning, my name is Ryan Frost, and I’m a senior policy analyst with the Pension Integrity Project at Reason Foundation. Our team conducts quantitative public pension research and offers pro-bono technical assistance to officials and stakeholders aiming to improve pension resiliency and advance retirement security for public servants in a financially responsible way. We have been involved in around 70 pension reforms over the past seven years, all aimed at bringing down long-term risks and costs to the …
Florida should abolish capital punishment, not make it easier
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently signaled an interest in making it easier for juries to hand down the death penalty. Florida lawmakers have responded with state legislation to make it happen. Currently, juries in Florida must unanimously recommend capital punishment, but House Bill 555 and Senate Bill 450 would lower the threshold to just eight out of 12 jurors. This would be a troubling development for justice in Florida. In his recent remarks at the Florida Sheriffs Association’s Winter Conference, the governor commented on the trial of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting perpetrator. He …
Federal judge: Restrictions on gun ownership violate medical marijuana patients’ Second Amendment rights
A federal judge recently ruled that a government ban blocking medical marijuana users from gun ownership is unconstitutional. The ruling labeled the practice ‘concerning.’ That is an understated description for a ban that has had very real consequences on Americans across the country. Jared Harrison of Oklahoma was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm after police found marijuana and a handgun in his car while he was driving to work in 2022. Judge Patrick Wyrick of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma dismissed the indictment, agreeing with defense attorneys that …
Sustainable highway funding requires charging the drivers who use them
In recent Public Works Financing columns, I’ve discussed the growing trend of equity concerns, such as offering free and reduced-rate trips to lower-income drivers to use express toll lanes and the separate trend of politicians disguising the real costs of using highways. In terms of effective transportation policy, the bad news is both trends are getting worse, with serious consequences for future highway revenue adequacy. In Dec. 2022, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a one-year “toll-relief bill” that applies to every toll road, toll bridge, and express toll lane in the state. Those who drive …
Ways the SECURE Act 2.0 can help people save for retirement
The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0) was enacted as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (HR 2617), the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill signed by President Joe Biden in Dec. 2022. Among the long list of changes adopted in the law are some that improve how employer-sponsored defined contribution retirement plans can better deliver financial security in retirement. SECURE 2.0 moves these retirement programs closer to the defined contribution (DC) plan design best practices long promoted by Reason Foundation’s Pension Integrity Project, but it also illuminates …
Analyzing Nebraska’s proposed legislation impacting school finance and property taxes
During their first legislative session under Gov. Jim Pillen, Nebraska policymakers are considering legislation that aims to increase the state’s role in financing K-12 education and decrease local property tax burdens for school district residents. Specifically, two state bills address the fact that Nebraska is one of the most property tax-dependent education systems in the country, and many of its rural school districts get no state equalization aid under the state’s K-12 funding formula. However, while the legislation would help alleviate property tax burdens, there’s a substantial exception baked in that would prevent taxpayers from …
Testimony: Making DC’s sports gambling market more competitive, attractive and profitable
District of Columbia Committee on Business and Economic Development Public Oversight Hearing Chairperson McDuffie and Councilmembers, My name is Michelle Minton, and I am a senior policy analyst with the Reason Foundation, a nonpartisan public policy think tank. I am grateful for the opportunity to provide public comment on the state of the District’s sports betting market and offer a suggestion on how the Council could make the market more competitive, attractive, and profitable for the city and its residents. When the City Council overwhelmingly voted to legalize sports betting in 2018, it did so …
Testimony: Maryland Senate Bill 259 would lead to greater health disparities and criminal justice inequities
Maryland State Senate Finance CommitteeSenate Bill 259 Flavored Tobacco Products–Prohibition Chairperson Griffith and members of the committee: My name is Michelle Minton, and I am a senior policy scholar at the Reason Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization. As an expert in public policy, a Maryland resident, and former smoker, I am grateful for the opportunity to submit my testimony regarding the proposed prohibition of flavored tobacco products. The aim of the proposed prohibition to reduce adult smoking and discourage youth initiation of any tobacco or nicotine product is a laudable one. …
Comments and analysis of legal marijuana proposals and regulation in Hawaii’s SB 375 and SB 669
Reason Foundation recently offered comments and analysis on how Hawaii’s Senate Bill 375 and Senate Bill 669 would impact consumers, taxpayers, and the legal cannabis industry. Analysis and comments on Hawaii SB 375 Feb. 15, 2023, comments are here (pdf). March 1, 2023, comments are here (pdf). Analysis and comments on Hawaii SB 669 Feb. 15, 2023, comments are here (pdf). March 1, 2023, comments are here (pdf). The post Comments and analysis of legal marijuana proposals and regulation in Hawaii’s SB 375 and SB 669 appeared first on Reason Foundation. Read more at Reason.org
With EMS takeover attempts, California’s fire departments seek more taxpayer funding to do less
Taxpayers throughout California should be concerned that firefighter unions are trying to convince local governments across the state to reshape and expand municipal fire departments’ control over emergency medical services. This move would have major implications for accountability, public safety costs, and government finances overall. On a CalChiefs podcast, which its creators describe as “the voice of the California Fire Service,” Southern Marin Fire Protection District Deputy Chief Ted Peterson provided some details on exactly how municipal fire departments are seeking to take over emergency medical services (EMS) delivery from county-level EMS systems: increased reimbursements …
