Regulatory reform – a long way to go
Emily wrote previously about the performance audit of state regulatory reform efforts. In my column today I take a closer look at the findings. Despite good intentions and serious efforts, the desired results have not materialized. The rising tide of regulation rolls in as state officials, like Canute, ineffectually order the sea to recede. We […]
September 11 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
August 11 to September 10 general fund-state revenue collections were $1.1 million less than anticipated
The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council issued its monthly Economic and Revenue Update today. For the August 11 to September period, general fund-state collections were a scant $1.1 million less than anticipated in the most recent official forecast, which was issued in June. For the last three months combined, revenues exceeded the forecast by $20.1 […]
September 10 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
Seattle ranks No. 40 on new economic index
According to the On Numbers Economic Index, Seattle ranks 40th in the nation, well behind top performers Oklahoma City, Autin and Omaha. The index is a product of American City Business Journals, which publishes regional business journals across the country, including the Puget Sound Buxiness Journal. The American economy is strongest in the heartland. Oklahoma […]
September 07 , 2012 - Emily Makings
State Auditor on Regulatory Reform
The state auditor's office has been working on a performance audit of Washington's regulatory system. Last September, the auditor created an inventory of regulations in the state, by agency. Yesterday, the auditor released "Regulatory Reform: Communicating Regulatory Information and Streamlining Business Rules." The audit asks if "state government websites effectively provide regulatory information to businesses" […]
September 06 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
How school funding affects state average scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress
In this post I present some charts relating education outcomes to per-student funding for public schools at the state level. The outcome measures I use are statewide average scores on various tests taken by students as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). NAEP is a program of the U.S. Department of Education’s […]
September 05 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
August 30 , 2012 - Emily Makings
The NFL and Workers' Comp
Workers’ compensation is a hot topic for us, and so it is for the National Football League. In honor of football season, let’s turn it over to an article by Darren Rovell on ESPN.com today: National Football League teams are facing a significant threat to their finances because of a legal option available to nearly […]
August 23 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
New Policy Brief: COST Study on Business Tax Burden
We have posted a policy brief on the 2012 edition of Ernst & Young’s annual study of state and local business tax burdens, which is published by the Council on State Taxation (COST). In fiscal year 2011, businesses paid a total of $16.3 billion in state and local taxes in Washington, representing 5.5 percent of […]
August 22 , 2012 - Emily Makings
Pension Odds and Ends
First, I found this post, from Kil Huh of the Pew Center on the States (via Walter Russell Mead), to be interesting. Huh’s “five truths about public employee pensions” are: Public pension funds face real funding challenges in a majority of states. The funding gaps have real impacts on taxpayers and states’ budgets. Policy makers […]
August 20 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
Discovering interactive tax calculators at National Taxpayers Conference
Just finished hearing a great presentation by Nick Kasprak, programmer and analyst at the Tax Foundation. he was leadoff speaker at the NTC conference, held this year in Washington, D.C. He showed us a number of user-friendly and useful tools to help understand state and local tax policies: net migration, performance against state expenditure limits, […]