The Blog at MSPC

This one-stop portal supports the initiative that government services should be organized around the people who use them, not the bureaucracy that administers them.

It is vital for the judicial branch to hold the legislative branch to the same standard it uses to override citizen-approved ballot measures. If the legislature is going to pass omnibus tax bills and policy “hot messes,” the people should be free to exercise their right of initiative to respond.

Open collective bargaining should be the default when government officials are negotiating public services and government salaries with taxpayer dollars. Especially when those dollars are already stretched thin.

Supporters are free to make their case. They can argue that only a small percentage of Washingtonians will pay the tax. They can argue that its revenue is necessary to pay for government services and tax reductions elsewhere. But the media has a different job. It shouldn't make the branding decision for voters.

Mountain States Policy Center today released a major new study examining Montana’s 1972 Constitution and making the case that voters should seriously consider calling a new constitutional convention when the question returns to the statewide ballot in 2030.

Idaho should keep two-year terms for members of the House but move state senators to four-year terms, staggered so roughly half the Senate is elected every two years.

An economy is simply too complicated for any individual, committee, government agency, or computer system to know everything necessary to plan it from the top down. The information required to make good economic decisions is scattered among millions of people, and much of that information changes constantly.

Before Idaho's next property-tax debate becomes another argument about assessments, exemptions and tax shifts, let's put government spending on the table too.

One of the reasons socialism continues to appeal to new generations is that it begins with goals that almost everyone shares.

A one-stop portal can reduce these barriers by allowing citizens to securely access government services from virtually any location while improving operational efficiency across state governments.

In the U.S. Supreme Court term that just ended, the justices issued three decisions that represent important victories for free enterprise.

Before there could be a declaration, there had to be a decision. That decision came on July 2, 1776.

Americans should not take the wisdom and thoughtful deliberation of the founders for granted, and we can’t be deceived into thinking that the American experiment can continue to thrive without the participation of an informed and engaged citizenry.

Part of a citizen’s job is to inform the rising generation of what the Declaration really said, what it really means, and why it is important. May we continue that effort long after this 250th anniversary has receded into history.

Governments have only those powers that the people, by consent, have given them. When a government no longer serves its rightful purpose, the people may reorganize or remove it.

The study, Tax increase ballot measures: How to increase voter participation, authored by Policy Fellow Sam Cardwell, finds that local tax increases are frequently decided during special elections that attract significantly fewer voters than primary or general elections.

Government officials should strive to maximize voter participation on important issues, and requiring tax increases to be considered at a primary or general election does just that.

Amidst evidence of signature gatherers being harassed, Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown is offering support to prosecute those trying to interfere with the initiative and referendum process. This is a refreshing and much-needed defense of the people’s sacred constitutional rights and the rule of law.

Most of us understand that the Constitution is a statement of positive law—that is, man-made law—but ask whether the Declaration is law as well.

The job of drafting a declaration of independence was handed to a group historians call the “committee of five.”