Publications -- Government

Aug 30, 2000

BA #336 – Banning Roads, Burning Forests

The fires that swept through Los Alamos National Laboratory during June 2000 illustrate much of what is wrong with federal land management. A series of bad decisions the United States Forest Service made concerning a prescribed burn (a fire set to reduce undergrowth and prevent future wildfires) at Bandelier National Monument resulted in a fire that raged out of control. As high winds combined with an overabundance of dead and dying wood, the fire incinerated everything in its path, including 400 homes.

Aug 29, 2000

BA #335 – Uninsured in the Lone Star State

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 4.8 million of the 19.6 million Texas residents - about one in every four - are not covered by health insurance. Moreover, the proportion of uninsured has changed little in the past 10 years. However, in many cases the uninsured are uninsured by choice. And lacking health insurance does not mean lacking health care in Texas.

Aug 15, 2000

BA #334 – South Africa's Battle with AIDS and Drug Prices

South Africa is mired in a health crisis as the rate of HIV infection reaches 22 percent of adults, including more than one in five pregnant women. The crisis is expensive. Drug treatment costs for AIDS range from $15,000 to $20,000 per year in the U. S., while per capita income in South Africa is only $6,800.

Aug 10, 2000

BA #332 – Reducing the Social Security Benefits Tax

Since 1993, middle- and upper-income Social Security recipients have been subject to income tax on up to 85 percent of their benefits. On July 27, the House of Representatives voted to repeal this provision, leaving up to 50 percent of benefits still subject to taxation. The tax reduction would total $117.4 billion over 10 years. The vote was 265-159, with 213 Republicans and 52 Democrats in favor - a margin not large enough to override a presidential veto. The Senate must now consider the bill.

Jul 18, 2000

BA #328 – Does the Distribution of Income Affect Life Expectancy?

In the history of social thought, advocates of a more equal distribution of income have made many arguments to support their cause. Egalitarians are now advancing a new argument: inequality of income leads to poorer health.

Jul 06, 2000

BA #327 – Four Years Of MSAs: The Lessons So Far

The Medical Savings Account (MSA) pilot program expires at the end of this year unless Congress acts soon to extend it.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) allowed small employers and the self-employed to set up a tax-favored savings account to pay for routine medical expenses, provided they also have an insurance plan that meets some very specific requirements.

Jun 02, 2000

BA #324 – Texas Concealed Handgun Carriers:Law-abiding Public Benefactors

In 1994, Texas citizens approved a nonbinding resolution asking the state to grant Texans the right to carry concealed weapons. Gov. Ann Richards had vetoed such a bill prior to the vote and vowed that no such bill would pass while she was governor. By contrast, her opponent in the race for governor, George W. Bush, said that if elected he would sign an appropriately structured "right-to-carry" law. Bush won the election and on May 26, 1995, signed a law granting Texans the right to carry concealed firearms. When he did so, Texas joined 22 other states that since 1986 have made it legal to carry concealed weapons.

Apr 25, 2000

BA #321 – Should the Fed Raise Margin Requirements?

On March 21, the Federal Reserve raised both the federal funds rate (the interest rate banks charge each other on loans) and the discount rate (the interest rate the Fed charges banks) by another 25 basis points (1/4th of 1 percent). In the wake of this latest increase, growing numbers of economists and politicians are starting to question the Fed's action. They are asking why farmers, small businesses and home buyers must be punished when the Fed's principal target appears to be the stock market. They are urging the Fed to raise margin requirements (the maximum percent of an investment that can be made with funds investors borrow from their brokers) instead of raising interest rates.

Dec 03, 1999

BA #307 – Patients' Rights: A Double Standard

As everyone "knows," the Patients' Bill of Rights that recently passed the House of Representatives would allow members of Health Maintenance Organizations to sue their plans. What most people probably don't know is that members already can sue their HMOs under current law. So what's going on?

Oct 14, 1999

BA #305 – Portland: Smart Growth's Bad Example

City officials and planners from all over the world are traveling to Portland, Ore., for a first hand look at the municipal pioneer of Smart Growth (also known as the New Urbanism), the latest fad in urban planning. Smart Growth promises less congestion, less air pollution, reduced infrastructure costs, more affordable housing and protection of open space through six basic policies...