Today on Buckmaster - Nick Dranias, director of the Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute, the Friday Reporters’ Roundtable with Mark B. Evans and Sarah Garrecht Gassen, and Matt Russell has the top weekend dining picks.... Read more»
It is a small victory for taxpayers, but an important one, for it calls the “quasi-public” Arizona Commerce Authority’s attention to the constitutional limits on its powers — and to the fact that its actions will be watched closely.... Read more»
When policymakers say they have enacted “historic” legislation, they are usually accused of hyperbole. But in the case of Gov. Brewer’s signing of HB 2815, it isn’t a big stretch to say that the action did make one historic move in regard to tax policy.... Read more»
Many states feud with the federal government. But Arizona has become something of a poster child of late.... Read more»
Goldwater Institute: Tax policy is often like looking at a pointillist painting – stare closely at only a section, and you don’t have a sense of the whole picture. But when you back up, the picture comes into a focus. Gov. Brewer recently signed a law creating a tax reform commission for Arizona.... Read more»
As national Sunshine Week comes to a close, some legislators are trying to close out the sunshine. A new proposal would expand a current exemption to Arizona’s public records laws and limit public information at universities.... Read more»
Whenever local bureaucrats or special-interest groups want to neutralize conservative legislators, one of their most-potent weapons is two words: “local control.”... Read more»2
An advocacy group gives Arizona an A-minus on how it helps taxpayers research online how and where state government spends their money.... Read more»
A state lawmaker has dropped language from a bill that would exclude school principals’ evaluations from the state public records law. The chairwoman of the House Education Committee said she included the provision by mistake.... Read more»
Consolidating elections in even-numbered years will keep bonds and spending initiatives from being approved in low-turnout elections, the Goldwater Institute says.... Read more»
A bill to regulate online schools might create an unintended consequence: grade inflation.... Read more»
It’s like a bad re-run. A few legislators are trying to revive Arizona’s film production tax credit (SB 1170) that lapsed in 2011.... Read more»1
With elections happening at a variety of times throughout a two-year cycle, special-interest groups have an upper hand because they can turn out their supporters on obscure election days while regular Arizonans are left in the dark.... Read more»
Some might say that getting back the capitol buildings’ paper is just symbolic nonsense for the sake of the state’s centennial. And sentiment is a bad reason to pursue any policy. But this is more than a feel-good idea.... Read more»
Sometimes important regulatory and tort reforms come in small packages.... Read more»
Governor Jan Brewer has declared that one of her priorities in the coming session is to pay down the state’s debt. The idea, mirrored by leadership proposals in the state house and senate, is both timely and refreshingly frank. It is time to square Arizona’s fiscal policy with the state constitution.... Read more»
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