The Environmental Protection Agency’s new Clean Power Plan (CPP) requires that states reduce their electric utility sector carbon dioxide emissions an average of 32% below 2005 levels by 2030. EPA twisted 80 words in the Clean Air Act into 1,560 pages of regulations (plus appendices) demanding that utilities return CO2...
In one business survey after another, Virginia is slipping from its high rated position of a few short years ago. Our economy did not grow last year. Our growth rate was zero. And with federal military spending decreasing, our future must be based on encouraging job growth in companies not...
I recently sat through two days of state candidates discussing top issues facing Virginia with several dozen business leaders interested in public policy. These discussions made it clear that our economy needs a significant boost and that our tax code needs to be made more relevant to today’s world. In...
When Dominion issued a request for bids this spring to erect experimental wind turbines off Virginia Beach, senior executives knew the project would be expensive. Offshore wind farms are built most economically on a scale of dozens or hundreds of turbines. But this project would have only two, and both would...
The trucking industry is opposing current proposals to expand the use of toll financing to reconstruct and widen aging and inadequate Interstate highways. To some observers, this appears paradoxical, since the trucking industry depends critically on the Interstates as their most important infrastructure—yet this vital infrastructure is reaching the end...
Earlier in July, U.S. Court of Appeals wrote that water pollution in the Chesapeake Bay is a complex issue in a major case affecting all agriculture. It says “…the winners are environmental groups, the states that border the Bay, tourists, fishermen, municipal waste water treatment works, and urban centers. The...
Jeb Bush recently ignited a political firestorm by making the following comments about economic growth and work: “My aspiration for the country—and I believe we can achieve it—is 4% growth as far as the eye can see. Which means we have to be a lot more productive, workforce participation has to rise...
Now that the Supreme Court has determined that the Obamacare entitlement is here to stay, let’s work toward reforming our health care system in ways that make sense. Virginia is one of 36 states that still has Certificate of Public Need laws (COPN) on the books. This law stems from...
College tuitions have soared over the past several decades, and so have federal grants and subsidized student loans. Many observers of the higher ed scene believe that easy credit has been a driving force behind the tuition hikes: The more Uncle Sam subsidizes student participation in higher education, the greater the...
The Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge of pollutants into waters of the United States. Pollutants can come from direct discharges or from dredging and filling material being dumped into waters of the United States. EPA and the Corps of Engineers’ apparently believe that “navigable waters” cover virtually any area...
