Why aren’t we making more progress improving the academic performance of Virginia’s school children? Many reasons have been advanced. Some say that school divisions don’t get enough money or that the money is unfairly distributed between schools. Others say that the public school system is over-regulated, bound by bureaucracy and...
By the appearance started to take shape in many stores in malls and shopping centers, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas – the time of year that represents about 20 percent of the retail industry’s total sales. And based on recent announcements by some national retailers to hire...
(Editor’s Note: Virginia has a large poultry industry and this article shows the impact of a judge’s ruling in California on that industry here in the Commonwealth.) A U.S. District Court judge in California on October 2, 2014, told six Attorneys General they did not have a case when they...
Editor’s Note: Virginia has been a leader in public private partnerships (P3’s) and in contracting out government services. The recent problems with P3’s on the proposed new highway 460 should not stop this process, but should be a caution that all such programs, large and small, need to be carefully...
The economic benefits from drilling off Virginia’s coast for natural gas and oil far exceed the cost of possible environmental impacts. That is the conclusion of a new study by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. The estimates for gas and oil reserves in this new study are from...
Recent news reports incorrectly reported that over 400,000 registered voters in Virginia did not have photo ID that will be required in the upcoming election in November. The part of the article that was accurate was the fact that voters will be required to present a valid photo ID in...
The Millennial Generation (18- to 29-years old) will be a predominantly suburban generation, contends a new study by the Demand Institute based on a survey of 1,000 Millennial households. Significant majorities of the younger generation aspire to owning a single-family home and consider automobiles a necessity, while a 48% plurality...
(Editor’s Note: This column is in response to Bob Poole’s column in our September 4, 2014 edition found here.) People who choose to spend their money on dining out do so by choice and for convenience – it’s a key reason people visit restaurants. They expect value, a pleasant experience...
(Editor’s note: The Jefferson Journal ran an article on the F-35 on August 7th, 2014 that can be found here. This piece came is in response to that column.) Low Observable or “stealth” technology is no longer a niche capability. It has now become the baseline for all future combat...
The Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy has led three other major Virginia organizations — the Virginia Retail Federation, the National Federation of Independent Business, and the Virginia Manufacturers Association — in calling on Governor McAuliffe and the General Assembly to reform Virginia’s tax system in light of the $2.4...
