1. Brief History
2. Early Successes
3. Establishment of the Center for Tax Policy
4. Establishment of the Education Program
5. Establishment of the Center for Health Policy Studies
6. Establishment of the Social Security / Medicare Program
7. Establishment of the Criminal Justice Center
8. Establishment of the Center for the Environment and Energy
9. Establishment of Women in the Economy
10. Establishment of the Welfare Program
11. International Focus
12. Institutional Growth
    • Revenue Growth
    • Washington Office
    • New Personnel
    • A new Publications Strategy
    • Marketing Innovations
13. Secrets of Success
    • Allowing the Customer to Come First
    • Adopting the Right Board of Directors
    • Developing Innovative Ideas
    • Incorporating Business Marketing Techniques
    • Adopting a Long-Term Strategy

Small, underfunded and understaffed, this young think tank nonetheless quickly gained national attention. With the motto, "Making Ideas Change the World," NCPA studies and research quickly emerged through media placements and leadership platforms. For instance:

• A 1983 study discovered that newborn black males, having a life expectancy of only 65 years, could expect to pay Social Security taxes over their entire working lives and die two years before qualifying for full benefits, with the future expected age of national retirement at 67. The study appeared on the front page of countless newspapers across the country.
• Another study summarized in the Wall Street Journal discovered that school districts receive revenue from state governments based on average daily attendance – not on student performance. In response to these incentives, the percentage of fifth graders who finished high school increased by 47 percent over three decades while student test scores plummeted.
• The 1984 NCPA book, Dismantling the State, described Margaret Thatcher's 22 techniques of privatization. The publication became a privatization handbook, used extensively in the 1980s at the local level in the United States and in countries throughout the world.
• Also in 1984, NCPA President John Goodman and Richard Rahn (then Chief Economist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce) published an article in the Wall Street Journal on privatizing Medicare with Medical IRAs. A decade later, Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs) became a reality for thousands of American workers and hundreds of thousands of corporations.
• A 1985 study by Dartmouth Professor Dennis Logue found that employees can lose from one-half to two-thirds of their pension benefits by simply changing jobs – even if employees are fully vested in every job. The study recommended personal and portable employee benefits which are now major health care issues concerning consumer-driven health plans.
• In 1986, the NCPA developed one of the most innovative policy proposals in recent times: taxpayer choice. Rather than allowing the government to collect billions in taxes each year for means-tested benefits, the NCPA believes taxpayers should choose how their tax dollars are spent. This concept of "compulsory tithing" has been endorsed by Newt Gingrich and other congressional leaders and incorporated in several Congressional bills, including a submission by Senator Dan Coats (R-Ind.).
• A 1987 NCPA study was one of the first to estimate the expected taxes and benefits of Social Security for workers in America. The study found that today's seniors receive four to five times more in Social Security benefits than they paid in taxes, yet people entering the labor force will pay tens of thousands of dollars more in taxes than they will receive in benefits when they retire.
• In another 1987 NCPA study, home-based work expert Joanne Pratt documented the incredible extent to which local ordinances and other laws discourage people – two-thirds of whom are women – from operating home-based businesses. The study received more than 10,000 column inches of print media coverage.
• A 1989 study by the NCPA consumed nationwide press, finding that IRAs and other tax-deferred savings have become less valuable for many middle-class taxpayers. According to the report, the Social Security benefit tax places these citizens in a higher tax bracket during retirement.
• Also in 1989, a series of NCPA studies researching taxes on the elderly furthered the repeal of the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act, the first repeal of a major federal welfare program in more than 100 years. Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman, the editors of the Wall Street Journal and many others credited NCPA studies as the primary reason for the policy reversal.

At this time, the NCPA's budget was less than $1 million, and the organization had no Washington, D.C. office. More established organizations began to recognize the small organization having such an immense impact on national policy. In a widely distributed memo, "How to Change a Law," Goodman identified many principles guiding the NCPA's successful strategies.