On Tuesday, November 6, South Dakota voters will decide whether to approve Initiated Measure 25 (IM 25). This measure would increase taxes on cigarettes by $1 per pack and increase the wholesale tax on tobacco products from 35 to 55 percent. The revenue, it is claimed, will be devoted to the state’s four technical schools. […]
Montanans will decide the fate of Initiative 185 when they vote this November. The ballot measure is needed, proponents say, because it will finally accomplish the most noble, yet elusive, of goals: reducing smoking and raising revenue for the expansion of Medicaid in Montana, so that thousands more can realize the benefits of healthcare. It […]
In May 2018, in Murphy v. NCAA, the Supreme Court invalidated a 1992 law called the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which prohibited most states from legalizing sports betting. (PASPA did not apply to the states of Nevada, Delaware, Oregon, and Montana, where sports betting was legal in 1992.) The Court ruled that […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) wants to make it easier than ever for communities across the nation to bring cutting-edge wireless service to millions of Americans. On September 26, 2018, the FCC will vote on a proposed rule that will hasten nationwide implementation of 5G cellular infrastructure. If adopted, the rules would limit the burdensome […]
Although most average Americans are not thrilled when they sign their tax returns every April, most of them do not have to worry that their returns will be on public display. The federal penalties for releasing tax returns without authorization are severe, as they should be. In 2013, Lois Lerner and her underlings at the […]
On August 7, 2018, Missourians will have the opportunity to vote to uphold their state’s right-to-work law, passed by the legislature in 2017, which ensures that anyone can hold a job without having to join a union. If they uphold the law by voting yes on Proposition A, Missouri will join the 27 states that […]
The state of California has moved ahead with one of the most ambitious pieces of state-based net neutrality legislation to date. SB 822, the Communications: Broadband Internet Access Service, reinstates the restrictions put in place by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) in 2015 and goes even further with additional regulatory restrictions. First introduced on […]
In the spring of 2018, New Jersey’s new governor and leaders in the legislature were arguing about which state taxes to raise. Governor Phil Murphy had pledged to soak the wealthy with a state individual income tax of 10.75 percent on all income more than $1 million, but powerful State Senate President Steve Sweeney preferred […]
On July 1, 2018, plastic straws will be banned in Seattle. No more will children be able to use the straw included with their juice box; no more will a couple on a date be able to order one drink with two plastic straws; you’ll have to navigate the ice in that vodka on the rocks without […]
A trickle of negative stories about New York Mayor Bill De Blasio’s (D) proposed Brooklyn-Queens waterfront trolley, known as the BQX, has turned into a deluge.
