It’s Friday!
It’s nearing year’s end, and we’d like to remind you: The Georgia Public Policy Foundation and the Friday Facts, our most popular product, exist thanks to your support and contributions. Please help us continue “Changing Georgia Policy, Changing Georgians’ Lives,” with your tax-deductible end-of-year contribution at http://tinyurl.com/3y27zfm.
Quote of Note
“Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each New Year find you a better man.” — Benjamin Franklin
Events
January 28, 2014: Join the Georgia Public Policy Foundation and education experts Eric Wearne, Jim Kelly and Ben Scafidi at Cobb County’s Georgian Club for an 8 a.m. Leadership Breakfast and panel discussion celebrating National School Choice Week: “School Choice and Georgia: An Update.” The first 50 people to register for this event will receive their very own school choice woobie – and you can wear it to the School Choice Rally at the Capitol that day! This event is $25 to attend. Register by Friday, January 24, 2014, online at http://weblink.donorperfect.com/SchoolChoiceandGeorgia.
Top Ten Foundation Publications for 2013
- The Case for Reforming Georgia’s Teacher Retirement System
- Georgia Civil Asset Forfeiture Plagued by “Rotten Reporting”
- Telemedicine, a Telling Sign of Health Care’s Future
- Reason Foundation Proposes New Northern East-West Bypass
- Nelson Mandela: Pragmatism that Saved a Nation
- Broken Families, Parents Without Skills, Kids in Juvenile Justice
- Creating the Vision for Savannah Classical Academy
- Background and Analysis of the Common Core State Standards As They Relate to Georgia
- Why School Teachers Are No Longer “Sage on the Stage”
- Georgia Has Alternatives to Medicaid Expansion
Health Care
Unintended Consequences: “Obamacare Will Usher In A Two-Tiered Health Care System,” says UGA economist Jeffrey Dorfman. Source: Forbes
Transportation
High-speed spending: The latest accounting by the California High-Speed Rail Authority to state lawmakers indicates that the agency has spent almost $600 million on engineering and environmental consultants — all without turning a shovelful of dirt on construction, according to the Fresno Bee. Source: Masstransitmag.com
Streetcar vs. trolley: Cincinnati Mayor-elect John Cranley will study the costs and benefits of Hop On Cincinnati, a downtown trolley bus system, as a potentially more affordable alternative to a planned streetcar system during his first 100 days in office. The 3.6-mile streetcar route is expected to cost $133 million by the time it’s completed in September 2016. Trolley supporters estimate it will cost $10.7 million to buy 16 trolley buses and launch five routes and another $4.4 million to operate each year, nearly the same as the streetcar is projected to cost. The streetcar cost could increase to nearly $150 million if the city loses a lawsuit with Duke Energy over who should be on the hook for relocating underground utility lines. (Who will pay utility relocation costs is a battle waging in Atlanta, too.) Source: Cincinnati.com
Media and social media
YouTube: We have more than 35,000 views on our YouTube channel already. View Foundation events at http://tinyurl.com/b7a3mzk.
Facebook: The Foundation’s Facebook page is nearing 2,200 “likes.” Join us at facebook.com/GeorgiaPolicy to view daily policy news, views, updates, Quotes of Note and event photos. Ask your high school or college student to like the Foundation’s Student Outreach Scholarship page on Facebook at facebook.com/GeorgiaPolicySOSProgram.
The Foundation’s Twitter account is closing in on 1,100 followers! Get your Foundation news at twitter.com/gppf.
The Forum: Find the latest blog posts at georgiapolicy.org/category/the-forum/.
Have a Happy New Year!
Kelly McCutchen and Benita Dodd
FRIDAY FACTS is made possible by the generosity of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s donors. If you enjoy the FRIDAY FACTS, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to help advance our important mission by clicking here. Visit our Web site at www.georgiapolicy.org. Join The Forum at http://forum.georgiapolicy.org/. Become a fan of the Foundation on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/gppf.
