Transit’s Not Bleeding the Taxpayer Dry
DC.StreetsBlog.org We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Roads don’t pay for themselves. But maybe they should. “Taxpayers cover costs that should be borne by road users,” asserts the State Smart Transportation Initiative at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “Road subsidies push up tax rates, squeeze government services, and skew the market for transportation.” […]
Amy Hanauer debates “right-to-work” advocate
In this video clip, Amy Hanauer, executive director of Policy Matters Ohio, discusses with Richard Vedder of Ohio University the impact of making Ohio a so-called “right-to-work” state. Among other highlights, Amy cites data showing that states with anti-union laws in place are not doing better economically. This segment starts at minute 9:28 of this […]
A black eye in the Buckeye: The unions flex their muscles in Ohio
The Economist Nov 12th 2011 | COLUMBUS, OHIO | from the print edition IN TOUGH economic times it might well seem reasonable to suggest that public-sector workers need to contribute a bit more, or to admit that their unions have extracted some unreasonably generous benefits. Even Democrats such as Rahm Emanuel, the mayor of Chicago, […]
Hanauer leads organization in fight for good jobs and strong communities
Alumni Profiles from the Robert M. LaFollette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison Amy Hanauer didn’t like that the economic expansion in the 1990s had left families in Ohio behind. “After what many economists characterized as the longest, strongest economic expansion in recorded history, I saw enormous evidence that many Ohio families were not […]
State must correct UC fund policy
The Toledo Blade As one of every 11 Ohio workers remains jobless, it’s essential that the state operate a solvent, efficient system of unemployment compensation. Timely payment of jobless benefits helps keep families out of poverty and injects needed cash into the state’s economy. But a new report warns that Ohio’s unemployment insurance trust fund […]
Economic Policy Institute turns 25, Amy Hanauer featured in film
This year marks the Economic Policy Institute’s 25th year of championing American workers and their families. EPI celebrated this milestone on Tuesday, Nov. 1 in Washington, D.C., by honoring Paul Krugman, Ray Marshall, and the leaders of Wisconsin’s labor community. Representatives from the Economic Analysis Research Network (EARN), including our own Amy Hanauer, took part […]
Healthy UC fund essential
The Akron Beacon Journal In August, Gov. John Kasich and Republicans in charge of the state legislature let pass an opportunity to collect $176 million from the federal government. There were strings attached, the state required to modernize its unemployment compensation system, say, by extending benefits to part-time workers or to those in approved job […]
James O’Keefe’s Newest Target Appears To Be A Small, Progressive Economic Think Tank
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Among members of Washington D.C.’s think tank community, the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) is known as a den for unbending liberals. The group works to stake out a progressive pole in the national debate. But in the age of President Obama, its influence has been limited. Despite having had an alum in […]
Census report shows Greater Cleveland families are feeling the sting of a lost decade
The Cleveland Plain Dealer Some economists are referring to the last 10 years as the “lost decade” and no doubt tens of thousands of Greater Clevelanders feel something critical has been missing. That something is income. A new report from the U.S. Census Bureau confirms that the region is deeply embedded in a gloomy national […]
Kasich Approves More Than $240M Packages to Retain Jobs: State’s Recent Incentive Deals Raise Questions About Effectiveness, Transparency, Conflicts
COLUMBUS
Ohio to Start Paying Off Loan for Jobless Aid
Mansfield News Journal Ohio plans to start paying back a $2.6 billion federal loan taken out during the recession to replenish a fund that pays unemployment benefits, though payments could have been smaller had the state accepted additional stimulus money. The state this month plans to pay $370 million, representing $70 million in interest and $300 million […]
Report Says Ohio Led U.S. in Pay Drops in Past Decade
The Toledo Blade A report from a liberal Cleveland think tank shows Ohio workers had the largest hourly wage cuts in the nation during the past decade. Policy Matters Ohio says that median hourly wages in the state declined 86 cents to $15.16 in 2010, down from $16.02 in 2000. Ohio was one of only 10 […]