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“Arkansas’ civilian labor force declined 4,800, a result of 4,800 fewer employed Arkansans.” Department of Workforce Services, August 19, 2013   (September 19, 2013) Arkansas’ civilian labor force–all employed and unemployed Arkansans–is contracting in an expansion, an unprecedented development in state labor market records that date to the mid-1970s.  The trend may continue when the August […]

“After three decades of rising education spending and dramatic personnel growth in the system, Arkansas’ academic achievement is well below national averages and lags most of the world’s industrialized countries. The current public school establishment is responsible for this performance and must be held accountable and urged to improve.”  Murphy Commission, Policy Foundation project, 1998   […]

“Government, in order to be lean and effective, needs to be infused with market forces, less of a monopoly provider of services and measured for accountability and performance.” Murphy Commission, Policy Foundation project, 1998.   Summary: State government does not have a revenue problem.  The people of Arkansas face weak employment and income markets.   (August […]

The 101st anniversary of the birth of Dr. Milton Friedman (1912-2006), the 1976 Nobel Economics laureate will be commemorated at a July 31 forum hosted by the Policy Foundation in Conway.   The forum will start at Noon at the Faulkner County Library (1900 Tyler).   Dr. Friedman, a 1928 graduate of Rahway, N.J. Public […]

(June 2013) Three decades before Congress voted to defund1 a welfare lobby founded in Arkansas, congressional auditors found the group disregarded federal guidelines by using trainees in a taxpayer-funded program for political activity. The episode illustrates the peril of legislators creating bias in the policy arena by subsidizing pet groups with tax dollars. Originally Relied on […]

Summary: Gov. Mike Beebe, state legislators and the Obama administration have not advanced a “private option” to expand Medicaid.  They have created an oligopoly, a market type characterized by a few suppliers able to capture above-average profits with government assistance.  The most likely outcomes are shortages of consumer information and medical services.   (June 2013) Business enterprises […]

“Reduce the state’s income tax…repeal the state’s capital gains tax.” Murphy Commission, Policy Foundation project, 1998 “State revenues have exceeded forecasts: modest cuts in income … and capital gains rates can occur in 2013.” Policy Foundation, November 2012   (June 2013) Arkansas Republicans, in control of the General Assembly for the first time since Reconstruction reduced […]

“Academic ratings and triggers for acclaim or sanctions should be issued for each K-12 public school district using a letter grade system (A, B, C, D, and F). Murphy Commission, Policy Foundation project, 1998   (March 25, 2013) The state General Assembly has approved part of a 15-year-old Murphy Commission recommendation that clarifies for parents […]

(May 2013) Economists and medical professionals have understood for some time that shortages exist within Arkansas’ health care system.  But the bipartisan group of state lawmakers that expanded Arkansas’ Medicaid rolls by an estimated quarter-million recipients (250,000) ignored this issue in three public acts1 that expanded the program.  The unintended economic consequence2 is that existing Arkansas medical shortages will […]

(April 2013) The state legislature has reduced the top Arkansas income tax rate from 7.0 to 6.9 percent on net income greater than $44,000 for “tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2015.”  The measure1 also cuts income taxes for lower-income Arkansans beginning in January 2014.2   No Change in Arkansas Rank   The new 6.9 […]