Statewide Polystyrene Ban Would Bring Unintended Consequences

Supposedly civic-minded prohibitions on consumer conveniences always have unintended consequences. California’s single-use plastic bag ban, for instance, has led to a surge in E. coli infections, created a swarm of thicker plastics bags that are a greater environmental hazard than the outlawed single-use plastic bags, boosted shoplifting, and been the cause of countless broken eggs […]

Unwilling to Wait for Voters, Los Angeles County Jumps Gun on Temporary Rent Control

Los Angeles County couldn’t wait for voters to decide this fall if local governments can enact rent-control laws. The Board of Supervisors recently enacted a “temporary” restriction on rent increases. If they think that will relieve the housing crisis, they are mistaken. The Los Angeles County ordinance sets rents at their current levels, and caps […]

Would Prop. 10 Reduce the California’s High Housing Costs?  Basic Economics Says No.

Californians will be faced with a dozen voter propositions on Election Day. None is more important than Proposition 10, which would allow local governments to enact rent control laws. The outcome will have a profound effect on California’s housing crisis. Prop 10 would repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act of 1995, which bars local governments […]

California Can Either Make Use of Its Sea of Oil, Or Drown In It

Earlier this month, The New York Times gave space to a climate activist who argued that policymakers must “Free California of Fossil Fuels.” Six days later, the Times’ California Today feature covered the state’s “Move to Mandate 100% Carbon-Free Electricity” through Senate Bill 100. A significant portion of Californians would agree with the articles. After all, […]

Teacher Unions Reap What They Sow With Unsustainable Pensions

The unions that represent California teachers have demanded, and received, platinum retirements for their members. But the good days at someone else’s expense cannot last forever. California teachers are beginning to feel the pain that they inflicted on themselves. “Schools are laying off employees and slashing programs,” the Wall Street Journal reported in late June, while “some […]

Could Decades of Big Government Be Why Bay Area Residents Want to Leave?

Between 1850 and 1860, California’s population grew by 410 percent – a rapid expansion fueled by the Gold Rush. The rush today, though, is more outbound than inbound. From 2007 to 2016, 6 million people left the state while only 5 million moved in. One could argue that with a population of nearly 40 million, […]

ZEV Bill Would Hurt Ridesharing Drivers, Do Little to Help Environment

On any given day, tens of thousands of Californians are earning good money driving for Uber, Lyft, and other ridesharing companies. For many, the gig economy has been a windfall. Glassdoor.com says the average annual salary for a Lyft driver in Los Angeles is $36,000, while Uber drivers average about $27,000 and can make up […]

If California Wants to Resist, Let’s Start with Trade Policy

Less than 32 percent of California voters who went to the polls on Election Day in 2016 pulled the lever for Donald Trump. These “deplorables” are probably delighted that Hillary Clinton isn’t president and pleased in general with how Trump has governed. Trump’s trade policies, though, should be another matter. During the campaign, Trump railed […]

Should We Really Need a License to Work in California?

Taking a job as a manicurist in California requires more than filling out an application and receiving an offer from an employer. Manicurists have to have at least 400 hours of training, which can cost thousands of dollars. They must also take a written and practical exam. The government-created barrier to a career in hair […]

California’s Net Neutrality Push is a Solution in Search of a Problem

Sacramento seems to ever be in search of a problem to solve even where no problem exists. Count Sen. Scott Wiener’s net neutrality bill among the efforts to force hard medicine on a healthy patient. Wiener’s aim with Senate Bill 822, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, is “to make it as comprehensive as the […]