Downsizing Blog
New Study on Fiscal Federalism
The federal government spends $750 billion a year on 1,386 different subsidy programs for state and local governments. The number of aid programs has tripled since the 1980s.
Federal Disaster Spending Boosted by Politics/Population
Despite rising federal deficits, Congress is set to pass another budget-busting spending bill. This time it is a $19 billion package of disaster-related subsidies.
Transit Death Spiral
Nationwide transit ridership in the first quarter of 2019 was 2.6 percent below the same quarter in 2018, according to data released by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) last week.
Does Bureaucracy Count as Economic Development?
The Economic Development Administration (EDA) is a small agency within the Department of Commerce. Its purpose is to give money to governments and businesses to fund local activities, such as $2 million to “repurpose the West Frankfort Mall” in Illinois and $150,000 for the Brick River Cider company in St. Louis to make “authentic hard cider.”
150 Years of Boondoggles
Today is the 150th anniversary of the pounding of the gold spike that represented completion of the first transcontinental railroad.
Highways: Devolution Revolution Needed
Former Ohio Governor John Kasich paves the way for sound thinking on highways in his new Wall Street Journal op-ed.
To Save the USPS, We Must Privatize It
The U.S. Postal Service has been losing money for more than a decade. Its financial outlook is bleak, with $110 billion in unfunded retirement costs and more liabilities accruing every year.
One Problem with Big Government: Often Run by Crooks and Liars
Presidential candidates are proposing ideas to expand government, including a Green New Deal and Medicare for All. One flaw with such schemes is that they would give government officials large new powers to be exercised not by angels but often by very shady characters.
O Zones and HUBZones: Aimed at the Poor, Aid the Rich
The Republican Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 created 8,700 “opportunity zones” across the country which receive special capital gains tax breaks.
Postal Service: Meltdown of the Mails
The U.S. Postal Service is in a growing financial crisis as mail volume continues to plunge. The Government Accountability Office says that a “comprehensive package of actions is needed to improve USPS’s financial viability.”