Guide to The Issues 2020 Offers Innovation for Georgia
Proposing market-based solutions to the state’s issues is always integral to the Foundation’s mission; given the lasting effects of the pandemic, it has become even more essential.
Government action should take place in an atmosphere of transparency and accountability, with respect for private property, individual rights and freedom of speech. A top down analysis of federal, state and local regulations can help protect individuals from government overreach with respect to such concerns as eminent domain, local architectural ordinances, municipal broadband and civil asset forfeiture.
Foundation Adapts, With 2020’s Georgia Legislative Policy Forum on Zoom
Instead of surrendering to COVID-19, the 2020 Georgia Legislative Policy Forum will adapt: It will be hosted on Zoom as a series of FREE weekly webinar beginning July 15, 2020, with the opening keynote by U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos.
GEFA: A Growing Obstacle to Private Efficiency
The original goal was for GEFA to be the lender of last resort for local governments with less than perfect credit ratings and lack of access to the private financial markets. Since its inception, however, GEFA rapidly surpassed its original mission.
Reforming Policing While Preserving Law Enforcement
There are good policies worth pursuing that will enhance accountability for law enforcement and judicial systems while respecting the difficult nature of the work required of these positions.
Georgia’s Reopening Approach Holds Lesson for Other States
Kemp always insisted the strictest measures on Georgians had to last only as long as necessary and no longer. The data indicate that Georgia has flattened the curve, meaning new cases are developing at a slow enough pace its healthcare providers and resources can handle them.
Build the Foundation for a Sound Ongoing COVID-19 Response
In the coming weeks, the Foundation will release a series of policy briefs proposing specific “mid-term” responses as the state continues to tackle coronavirus and its aftermath. It has become clear, however, that even great ideas and good intentions require evidence they are being executed, and that they are being implemented in the spirit in which they were intended.
Innovation, Lessons Learned Guide Georgia’s Response to Coronavirus
The response by state officials thus far has been practical and preemptive, lessons honed in recent years.
Pulling Back the Curtain on Georgia’s Budget Woes
Georgians are puzzled by an apparent dilemma: Why, in the middle of a booming economy and record-low unemployment, is the state government facing budget cuts?
A Job for Government
Georgia’s unemployment rate may be at record levels, but not so much the state’s employment-to-population ratio, which is the percentage of the working-age population (age 16 to 64) employed.
The Empty Promise of ‘Democratic’ Socialism
While there are countries that have reduced income inequality by using taxation to redistribute wealth, this robbing from the rich and giving to the poor paradigm has proven unsustainable.
Federal Tax Reform Opens Opportunities for Georgia and for Rural Georgia
Most experts agree that recent federal tax reforms will put pressure on high tax states to either reduce taxes or continue to lose residents fleeing to lower tax states.
Georgia Puts the ‘Commission’ in Tax Commissioners’ Pockets
Why do we allow county tax commissioners to line their pockets using county resources? And why does the Georgia General Assembly continue to allow individuals to profit at the expense of taxpayers.
Reason Foundation
Reason Foundation advances a free society by developing, applying and promoting libertarian principles, including individual liberty, free markets and the rule of law.
Regional Price Parities by State and Metro Area
This data offers comparisons of buying power across the 50 states and the District of Columbia, or from one metro area to another, for a given year.
Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)
The State of Georgia's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) is an annual publication of the State Accounting Office.
Georgia Governor’s Budget Reports
Each year, the Governor recommends to the General Assembly a budget for the State of Georgia. This proposed budget and an amended version of the current year’s budget are detailed in the Governor’s Annual Budget Reports.
Georgia Department of Community Affairs
The Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) has been an advocate for our state’s communities for four decades, helping spur private job creation, implement comprehensive plans, develop downtowns, generate affordable housing solutions and promote volunteerism.
Architectural Ordinances: Government Overreach vs. Home Rule
Local governments are stifling innovation, mandating aesthetics and materials, restricting designs and layouts, all while infringing upon the rights of private property owners.
Foundation President Kyle Wingfield Provides Testimony on ‘Architectural Ordinances’
Kyle Wingfield, president of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation, was invited to provide testimony to the Georgia House Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee on February 20, 2019, regarding architectural ordinances. His prepared testimony is published below.
GEORGIA HOUSE AGRICULTURE…
Case for Incentives Strikes Out
This commentary by John Hood, chairman of the John Locke Foundation, appeared in the Carolina Journal’s August 2018 edition. Read it online here.
Case for Incentives Strikes Out
By John Hood
North Carolina politicians and policy analysts have been arguing for decades about targeted…
