Government spending Archives - Page 73 of 75 Voice For Liberty

Mar

Kansas employment trends

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the trend in Kansas private sector employment and government employment. Related content is at Kansas Loses Private Sector Jobs as Government Grows , Government employees thrive, Governor Claims Growth While Jobs Disappear, Kansas continues to suffer from job growth deficit, and Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius and Kansas jobs.

Mar

By Bob Weeks

Kansas can have fast, achievable savings

Kansas Senator Chris Steineger (Democrat from Kansas City) has formulated a list of items that he says could lead to "fast, achievable savings" for the state of Kansas. This list is titled the "$100 million list." Some of the items have cost savings given, and some don't. In particular, the idea of selling state-owned office buildings is appealing. Steineger showed me preliminary research that showed that the "rent" the state charges agencies is more expensive than private office space in downtown Topeka. The revenue from selling the buildings is a one-time boost, but the reduced operating expense is ongoing. Here's…

Mar

By Bob Weeks

Kansas historic preservation tax credits: the hearing

On Wednesday, the Taxation Committee of the Kansas House of Representatives heard testimony on HB 2496, which would expand the historic preservation tax credit program. This program provides tax credits to qualified historic preservation projects. I testified at the hearing, and my written testimony is at Kansas historic preservation tax credits should not be expanded. The idea of tax credits confuses some people. Some may confuse credits with a tax deduction. Some may believe that tax credits are given out at no cost to the state. But in fact, the tax credits are quite costly. As I told the committee…

Mar

By Bob Weeks

The stimulus evidence one year on

Last week the Wall Street Journal reported a piece that analyzes whether the Obama stimulus plan, after one year's time, can be judged a success. (See The Stimulus Evidence One Year On) Robert J. Barro, who is professor of economics at Harvard University and a senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, writes that the stimulus may be a good deal in the short run -- if the government spends on things that are truly worthwhile. As we've seen, that is not always the case. But Barro says, correctly, that this spending, paid for with borrowed money as it is,…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Importance of economic freedom explained in Wichita

Yesterday Robert Lawson appeared in Wichita to deliver a lecture titled "Economic Freedom and the Wealth and Health of Nations." The lecture explained how Lawson and his colleagues calculate the annual "Economic Freedom of the World" index, which ranks most of the countries of the world in how the "policies and institutions of countries are supportive of economic freedom." The conclusion is that economic freedom is a vital component of well-being, income, health, and both personal and political freedom. Robert Lawson The Economic Freedom of the World annual report is available in its entirety at FreeTheWorld.com. Lawson started his lecture…

Feb

By Guest Author

State budget ‘gap’ is all about perspective

By Dave Trabert, Kansas Policy Institute When businesses or individuals talk about cutting their expenses, it means they are going to spend less money that they did in the past. But when governments talk about budget cuts they often have a different perspective: they are spending less than they had hoped to but not necessarily less than the year before. For example, we often heard how Kansas schools had to cut their budgets last year but they still spent $12,660 per pupil, or 3.9% more than the previous year. "Gap" is another example of how the meaning of words differs…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Government spending does not create prosperity

In his op-ed Don’t buy canard about spending, Alan Cobb of Americans for Prosperity writes about the illusion that government spending creates economic growth. It's an important topic, as we've just been through nearly a year of Obama stimulus spending, and people are wondering if the effort has paid off. Locally in Kansas, spending advocates argue that reducing Kansas state spending will cause economic growth to suffer. Even more locally in Wichita, city council members and city hall bureaucrats argue that government is responsible for managing economic development in Wichita, some going so far to proclaim that free people and…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Don’t buy canard about spending

By Alan Cobb "Canard" is a funny word. It keeps popping into my head anytime I read another self-anointed do-gooder who claims that government spending leads to economic growth. "Canard" means a false report -- and we've got lots and lots of them about these claims. If I take $20,000 from my neighbor and hire a gardener, the economy certainly hasn't grown by $20,000. It's simply been a shift of money. Rearranging the furniture in your living room doesn't increase the number of easy chairs or TVs. That's what happens when your taxes pay for someone else's salary, build a…

Dec

By Bob Weeks

Kansas state budget crisis largely self-inflicted

What should citizens do when they feel that local news media is not covering issues as they should be covered? You could do as I did, starting Voice For Liberty in Wichita. Others start think tanks like the Kansas Policy Institute and its featured projects Kansas Watchdog and Kansas Reporter. Now the Kansas Policy Institute has placed some of its research into our state's largest newspaper by way of paying for advertisements. Following is the text of an an to appear on Sunday. The ad as it will appear is available at State Budget Crisis Largely Self-Inflicted. More information about…

Dec

By Bob Weeks

Public sector employees doing well

Below, Steven M. Greenhut tells how -- despite a poor economy -- public sector employees are doing quite well. I don't think the problem is quite as bad here as it is in Greenhut's home state of California. But just this week the Wichita City Council voted, in spite of a tight budget that has produced layoffs and outsourcing of city employees, a one-time payment of two percent of their annual salary to Wichita municipal court judges. This was made in lieu of merit pay. Greenhut's recent book is Plunder!: How Public Employee Unions are Raiding Treasuries, Controlling Our Lives…